Love Rebellion
by J.K.RowlingWannabe
Summary: Lily and James, are always at odds with each other. Until, that is, they discover that they are on the same side in this war against You-Know-Who
1. The First Day

Lily Evans and James Potter:

"Follow me, everyone!" someone was saying, "Gryffindors this way!" Most everyone from the Gryffindor table got up and began to follow the boy.

But Lily Evans hung back. She looked toward the Slytherins moving in the opposite direction until she found a pale, skinny, black-haired boy.

"Sev!" she called. She ran to him.

"Sev! I can't believe they put us in different houses! But it's still okay though, right? I mean, we'll have classes together and we can still talk to each other and-"

"Lily, I-" the boy began.

"Oh Severus! I can't believe it! You know I'd much rather be in Slytherin with you!"

"Oi!" another dark-haired boy said, he had come up behind Lily and Severus unexpectedly. His wire rimmed glasses were crooked and his hair seemed in a permanent state of disarray.

"What kind of Gryffindor wants to be in Slytherin?" he scrutinized Lily.

"Go away!" she said, "We don't want to talk to you!"

James Potter looked over her shoulder and gazed at the boy behind her.

"Hey I remember you, _Snivellus_!" he chuckled. "Guess you got what you wanted! Got to be in Slytherin! Too bad your girlfriend here couldn't join you." He guffawed at his own supreme joke.

But Lily wasn't laughing. In fact, she was livid.

"You better stop!" she said, her face turning as red as her hair.

"Make me!" James replied, crossing his arms at her.

"Stop or I'll - I'll -I'll do something to you!" She pulled out her wand and pointed it right at James's nose.

For the first time, James showed some apprehension.

"E-Easy there," he tried to push the wand away from his face, but Lily stayed firm. "You don't know what you're doing with that! Somebody could get hurt! Do you even know any spells?"

"No." she replied.

He smiled, "Well you can't do magic without spells!" He nudged the wand away again, just to be brought back up to his face.

"I've done loads of magic!" Lily argued, "And I didn't use any spells!"

James rolled his eyes. "That's nothing! The magic you do when you're little is just bits of it. Then we come here, so we learn spells that help us do real magic, like your parents do."

"My parents can't do magic." Lily said, lowering her wand. Severus groaned behind her.

"They can't do magic?" asked a confused James, but soon his eyes lit up with realization and another smile broke across his face. Severus just groaned again.

"You must be Muggle-born!" James said. "That explains it!" He mocked hitting himself in the head, but Lily didn't laugh.

James looked over her shoulder and glared at Severus. "What are you doing talking to a Slytherin?" he asked, "Don't you know that Slytherins don't like Muggle-borns like you? No, they only like _pure-bloods_, people with an all wizard family."

Severus had his hands buried in his face, but Lily continued in angry defiance.

"I know you're lying." she said, "Severus says that Muggle-borns are just like everyone else, and besides, if you were telling the truth, how did he get into Slytherin when he as a Muggle father?" She crossed her arms, convinced she'd won the argument.

James laughed. "You think that I'm the one lying?" James snickered in Severus's direction. "First of all, Slytherin doesn't care much about half-bloods, you know, people with Muggle and magic blood in them." Lily narrowed her eyes. "And second, he lied to you about Muggle-borns being the same as everyone else. Lots of nasty wizards say that Muggle-borns shouldn't have magic. They say that they got dirty blood."

Lily did nothing.

"Not me, though!" James smiled, "I don't believe a word of it! My dad says that there are Muggle-borns with twice the magic that most pure-bloods have! And I bet your friend, _Snivellus, _knew all about that."

Lily turned to Severus. "Is that true?"

Severus nodded miserably.

James chuckled. "Its all right, though." he said, "Why don't you talk to someone with some real manners?" He held out an arm and flashed a smile.

"Get away from me, you horrible boy! C'mon Sev!" Lily grabbed Severus by the arm and began to drag him away.

"N-No! Wait! You're going the wrong way!" James ran after them.

"Lily," Severus said, "You've gotta go back to your house."

Lily paused, then turned around and glared at James Potter.

"Fine." she said, "I'll go, but I'm certainly not going with _you_!" She began to walk towards the place where the rest of the scarlet-robed people were headed.

"Wait, Lily!" Severus called after her. He jogged to catch up. "Lily, you-you're not mad at me are you?" He looked sheepish.

Lily frowned. "No, I'm not mad. I'd never be mad at you, Sev. We're best friends forever, remember?" She gave a fleeting smile as she hurried to catch up with Gryffindors disappearing down the corridor.

Severus Snape walked back to his own common room, alone, but happy that Lily wasn't too angry with him. After all, she was his best friend forever.


	2. Fifth Year Confessions

**Hey everyone! Here's Chapter 2 of what I hope turns out to be a great story. Here's my take on what really happened as James and Lily grew up. Please read and review as much as you want. As I forgot to mention in the previous chapter, I own nothing. I'm a J.K. Rowling wannabe, but not the real thing. Sigh... if only. Anyway. Read, enjoy, tell your friends. Meanwhile, I'll keep writing so Chapter 3 comes in quickly. Thanks! :)**

Lily's eyes began to tear up as she turned her back on her once-best-friend, Severus Snape, and climbed through the portrait hole. It was so hard to let him go. But her friends were right.

"He's such a creep!" they said. "Lily, people like Snape are just bound to be Death Eaters. Nothing you can do about it."

But Lily absolutely refused to believe them. She could see as well as the others that Snape wasn't always nice. She could see that he really hated some people. But a Death Eater? That required a real evil, a pure hatred for all things Muggle, and a selfishness that put some people higher than others in mind. Lily could see Lucius Malfoy becoming a Death Eater. Maybe even Goyle, since he had no brains to tell him otherwise. In fact, she guessed that was where they were right that minute, Voldemort's inner-circle, having graduated years ago.

But Severus? No, she couldn't see anything like that in him. He might have strange tastes in friends, but surely he wasn't like them himself.

But Lily was wrong. She had seen the truth in his eyes today when he had called her 'Mudblood.' The person she once saw as a friend and an ally through the years when magic seemed so new and confusing, she now saw the angriness that he had been hiding. And now he had the audacity to slither back here and beg for _forgiveness_?

"Ha!" She said aloud to the seemingly empty common room.

But for the second time that day, she had been wrong. Invisible to her, someone was sitting on the chair by the fire, reading a letter.

James Potter had snuck down the stairs with his Invisibility Cloak to read a letter from his mum. The rest of the Marauders were still awake in their beds, but James was afraid to see what the letter said.

His family was pureblood, and none of them were marked down as blood traitors. But still, You-Know-Who was gaining power, and everyone seemed to be getting hurt. Like his parents, James firmly believed that You-Know-Who had to be stopped. But Voldemort didn't seem to care much about blood status anymore. Now he was killing anyone who stood in his way. The Potters were afraid to fight. James's parents believed that making waves at a time like this was simply too dangerous. James, however, wanted to fight. _Not_ doing anything at a time like this was too dangerous. He shook his head of thoughts and turned to his letter.

_Dear James, _

_ How are you? I hope you're safe at Hogwarts. I'm sorry I forgot to send cookies again. It's been a long week. _

_ I'm afraid your father's not feeling so well. It's flu season, and he's caught it from one of his co-workers. I've been feeding him lots of soup, and I'm sure he'll be back on his feet in no time._

_ It's lucky for us, though, that your father hasn't been able to go to work. Death Eaters have somehow penetrated the Auror Office. Word is that they were rooted out before they could get any real information, but there's always the chance they were able to Confund someone. The Ministry is in a panic. People are afraid to speak to each other, because no one knows who's in their right mind and who's not. Luckily, you're father is not suspected. After all, he was right here with me the whole time. But imagine how close he was. Gives you a shock doesn't it?_

_ James, I need you to promise me you won't cause trouble for a while now. I know you and your friends have your little adventures, but _please_! Keep to yourself until this whole thing blows over. You can do that for me, can't you? _

_ Your father's already on a sickbed, and I can't stand to think you might be headed there next. So, please, just for me, keep to your studies. Your such a smart boy, James. Please promise me you'll keep a low profile._

_ Love, _

_ Mum_

James shook his head. His mother didn't understand a bit. He and his friends were doing all they could to prepare for a fight. James knew they would be the fiercest fighters against the Dark. Sirius didn't like to talk about it, but James could see the years of hatred for his family's beliefs building up. And Remus, who had such a hard life as it was, Remus never compromised good.

_And a werewolf on our side will sure give those Death Eaters a run for their money. _James smirked to himself.

And then there was Peter. Peter sometimes doubted himself, but James knew that when the time came, Peter would be there to fight with the rest of them. The Marauders made their reputation known. Already they were fighters, rebels, making a name for themselves. Ready at each second of everyday for a fight

Lost in thought, he hadn't even noticed a tearful Lily make her way into the common room until she spoke.

"Ha!" The shock of hearing another voice in the room made him jump. The Cloak cascaded to the ground making him visible once more. He looked up to see a red-eyed, red-haired Lily glaring at him.

"Are you spying on me?" she spat at him.

"I- what? No, course not!" he said. "I was just-" He held up his letter.

Lily glanced at the letter then back to James.

"Writing a letter to your mum? And you needed to be invisible for that?" She scowled at the discarded cloak on the floor.

"Uh- yeah." James said, carefully folding his mother's letter and putting it in his pocket. "I guess I'll go to bed now. Unless you want me to stay?" He wriggled his eyebrows and took a step closer.

Lily recoiled, fully repulsed by his over-confidence. "Why on earth would I want you to stay?"

He gave a lopsided smile and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Well I don't know. You just look so upset. I figured you could use a little comforting." He took a step closer and slid his arm around her.

Lily remembered Severus's words, _"He fancies you." _ She pushed James away. "If you remember, part of the reason I'm upset is because of you."

"Is this about what happened with S_nivellus_?" James asked, no longer smiling. "Come on, Lily. You know that wasn't my fault! Snape is Death Eater to the core, everyone knows that."

Lily blinked furiously. "No he's not! He's always been good to me-"

"Oh, yeah? Like today he was so good to you? Today when he called you- called you that name?" James's face was turning red and his voice was on the verge of shouting.

"Shush, James!" Lily said quickly. "You'll wake up the whole-"

"No! You listen to me!" he interrupted again. "I'm actually trying to defend you! I want him and all his followers gone. And I won't stop until he's defeated. Until they're all defeated! Rules no longer apply anymore. Can't you see that people are going crazy with fear, and that I've got to get ready _now_? Two years and we'll be out of this bloody school, and you'll be right on top of their list! You don't know what kind of danger you're in, Lily!"

"I don't know the danger I'm in? James, listen to yourself! You're talking about taking down all of Voldemort's forces single-handedly. No one can do that, James. It's impossible. You're just going to hurt yourself if you try. Meanwhile, you're picking on innocent people because of your ridiculous dreams of playing the hero. Grow up! You're definitely not going to defeat anyone by hanging them by their ankle in midair. Sooner or later, you'll have some big enemies in some high places and then you'll be no good for anyone." Lily was seething. She could still see Snape earlier today crying out as James and his friend "Have some compassion! You won't win by picking on innocent people!"

"Innocent? I'd hardly call Severus Snape innocent. Don't pretend like you don't know the only place he's headed is You-Know-Who's inner circle." James took a moment of pleasure as she scowled at her shoes. "Besides, how can you not fight? We are the only thing keeping him from gaining total control."

"What? You think I don't want to fight? Everyone I know is in danger! He plans to wipe out the entire Muggle population! Everything that I grew up knowing is at stake. My mum, my dad, my sister-" James was surprised to see the tears appear in her eyes again.

"Oh boy, Lily- I'm sorry-" He reached out a hand to comfort her.

Lily took a step back from the hand. "I can handle myself, James. This isn't one of your silly Marauders games. This is my reality. I'd give my life five times over if I could keep my family safe." Her shoulders shook with a sob.

James said nothing. He kept his head down as she slowly walked from the common room to collapse on her four-poster bed in the dormitory.

James sighed. He'd seen her defensive before, but never so passionately.

That was one of the reasons he liked her. She always fought on the right side, for the right reasons. James couldn't remember a time when she wasn't able to call him out on being a total prat. _I'd give my life five times over to keep my family safe._

He sighed. A life was a lot to loose. In his dreams of defeating the Dark Lord, never did he see himself dying. It was so final, dying. He needed to be alive to keep his family safe, to be with Lily, and to fight alongside her.

Slowly, he took the folded letter out of his pocket. Then, once he found some parchment and a quill he wrote a hasty, yet earnest, reply to his mother, promising to stay safe.

**Whoa! That took a pretty dramatic term really quickly. Still, there's plenty more to come. Review please! I'll try to have Chapter 3 up as soon as possible. **


	3. Apologies, Friends, and Broken Promises

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, never have, never will. I'm not sure if I have to write this every chapter, but I think I will, just to be on the safe side. I forgot to mention it in the first chapter. Whoops. Please don't sue me.**

Lily woke up crying. Her dreams that night had been the worst she'd ever had. She was yelling at James in the Forbidden Forest, when Voldemort came up behind him and killed him instantly. She screamed as Voldemort pointed to the people behind her. She turned and saw her entire family, completely oblivious, smiling at her innocently. She yelled that them to run as she pulled out her own wand and began to duel, fighting harder than she'd ever had. But Voldemort brought her to her knees, right beside James's body. Voldemort raised his wand, prepared to give deal her the final blow-

And then she woke up.

She hardly acknowledged the tears, but instead gave herself a few moments to just breathe. Remind herself that it was all just a dream, that everyone she loved was safe.

But then she thought about Potter. She knew their conversation the night before was the reason she was having these dreams. Perhaps she'd been too hard on him. After all, he was still just a boy. It wasn't fair of her to crush his dreams of being the hero. Lily couldn't help but sympathize with him. He was a real prat sometimes, but he wanted the same things she did. She knew he didn't love his family and friends any less than she loved hers.

She sighed and began to dress. She knew what she had to do. Talk to Potter and apologize. And Severus- well, she would leave Severus alone. She wasn't quite ready to forgive him yet. Maybe she would never be.

She glanced over her sleeping classmates once, making sure she hadn't disturbed them, and made her way down to the common room.

James was already there. He and his friends were playing a game of Exploding Snap, but when he saw her, he put his cards down and walked over.

"Lily, I-"

"James, I-"

They smiled awkwardly at each other.

"You first." he said.

Lily took a deep breath. "Look, James. I'm sorry I yelled at you. It wasn't fair of me, I just- well, it was a crazy night. But all the same, you didn't deserve those things I said.

James stared at her in disbelief. "You're apologizing? Lily, you didn't do anything wrong. I just came over here to apologize to you! I realized as soon as you left that you were completely right. I'm not ready to fight anyone, and I'm certainly not ready to give my life." He shook his head, looking distant. "I just keep imagining my mum and dad in danger because I'm so pigheaded. It- well, it scares me a bit." He shrugged off his thoughts, ran his hand through his dark hair, and smiled. Lily smiled too, he looked much more like the James she knew and couldn't stand.

"All right, then." She turned to leave, but James grabbed her wrist.

"Hey, I still have some questions for you. Like, what do you mean you had a 'crazy night?' What exactly happened before you walked in and ruined my very peaceful evening? And explain the tears! Oh, I'm dying to hear about the tears." He grinned mischievously, not letting go of her wrist.

Lily scowled. "James, I don't think _now_ is the right time to explain my life's story."

He shrugged. "All right, what would be a good time for you? And you don't have to tell me your life's story. Just last night."

Lily freed herself from his grasp.

"Prat." she mumbled as she rubbed her wrist. "It's a shame, I was just starting to like you."

"Really?"

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Before I thought you were just torturing people for fun, but now I find out you do it for the good of the world. That makes everything better."

"See?" James said earnestly. "I'm really not a bad guy, Lily!"

She snorted. "You get thicker everyday, Potter! You're one of the smartest people I know, but sometimes I can't help thinking that head of yours is filled with hot air."

James smirked. "Did you just say I have hot hair?"

This received a kick in the shin by Lily, who huffed and hurried away.

"Ow! No, Lily come back!" He limped as fast as he could to catch up with her.

"Look, Lily. I know I'm a prat, and a hot-head and all that, but I'm not that bad. No, really!" he said at her disbelieving look. "I'd be a good friend. I'd be nice to you and make you feel welcome, unlike that _Snivellus_. That's what you were doing out there, weren't you? Last night? I bet _Snivellus_ came to apologize and you told him to kick it."

Lily didn't even realize that she was gradually turning pink. "Look, I only came over to apologize to you, and since I've done that-" she began to turn away.

"Lily-"

"James!" she turned back to face him, their noses nearly touching. "For the last time! What I do is none of your business! I don't want you to protect me. I don't need a bodyguard!"

"Fine!" he said, taking hold of her wrist once more. "All right, I'm okay with that. You don't want a bodyguard? Then I'll just be your friend. C'mon, Lily. You could see me as a friend, right?" He smiled at her hopefully.

Lily was surprised how much his smile made her want to agree with him. She could see the reflection of her face in his glasses, and she saw that she looked just as confused as she felt.

"Friends?" she said. "Just friends? Like help-each-other-with-homework and borrow-each-other's-books type friends?"

James nodded. "If that's what you want."

He let go of her wrist, his eyes never leaving hers. She peered into his face, trying to find some kind of loophole, or some trace of insincerity.

"Okay." she said finally. "Alright, I'll be your friend. Just promise me no more night excursions."

He smiled again. "I promise! I mean- wow, Lily. I'll be a great friend! The best you've ever had!"

"That's great, James." she said shaking her head. She was suddenly exhausted. "Then as a friend, you'll let me get back to sleep, right?"

"Oh, of course! Wouldn't want my friend to get too tired, would I?" he guided her over to the girl's dormitory stairs, where he couldn't go any further.

Lily made her way up the stairs before collapsing and falling back to sleep in her four-poster. For some reason, she felt like she had just made a deal with the devil.

James watched Lily until she disappeared behind the dormitory door before bursting out in victory.

"Calm down, mate!" Sirius Black called from behind him. "You're gonna break something!"

"Did you hear that, Padfoot?" James danced over to where the Marauders were still playing cards in front of the fire. "Friends! I'm now friends with Lily Evans! That's progress, my friend, progress!" He laughed gleefully.

"Prongs," said Remus Lupin from the opposite end of the table. "Don't you think your getting yourself into something way over your head?"

"Of course I am, Moony, and her name is Lily Evans!"

"That's not what I-"

But his words were drowned out by the explosion of the cards in Peter's hands.

"Nice play, Wormtail." Sirius said. "But I think we better go find a strait-jacket for Prongs. He needs his sanity if we're gonna be out tonight."

James suddenly snapped back into reality. He suddenly remembered the promise he made his mother- and to Lily.

"Uhh- guys?" His sudden change in mood caught the attention of the three other Marauders. "Listen, I'm not so sure about tonight."

"Not so sure? What're you talking about?" Sirius put the cards down and stood up. "Tonight's a full moon, remember? And we've gotta be there. Now that Peter's finally managed to become a full rat, all of us can be there together. Don't you remember? What's gotten into you? This Lily thing hasn't gone to your head, has it?"

James shook his head. "No! It's not that, it's- well, I don't think it's very safe, is all! You can understand that?"

Sirius was now shaking in anger. "Understand? The only thing I understand is that you're letting that girl mess with your head! What do you want us to do? Make Moony go it alone?"

James glanced at Remus who tried to hide the disappointed expression on his face.

"No," he whispered. "You're right. I can't ask him to do that." He sighed and put his hands in his face. "I guess I have no choice."

James felt an underlying sense of guilt. He had just become friends with Lily, but he was already breaking promises. He knew that tonight would be the first of many more to come.

When the day had finally ended, the Marauders stayed in the common room as people slowly made their way up to their dormitories.

It was 8:00, and since it was almost summer, the moon hadn't risen yet. They were still in the clear.

But as time passed on, James could see Remus becoming more and more agitated. He looked around and saw only one person left- Lily. Sirius gestured at him, then at Lily until James knew exactly what he was supposed to do.

"Hey, what'cha doing?"

The voice startled her, and she nearly dropped the book she was reading.

"James! You scared me!"

"Sorry." He didn't smile. He didn't even try to make conversation.

"So- how are you?" Lily attempted.

"Fine." he said simply. "What are you reading?"

"Oh, this?" She held up the book. "Nothing important, why?"

James shrugged. "I dunno, I just was thinking that' you'd be more comfortable upstairs. You know, in bed? Rather than this stuffy common room."

She thought about it for a minute. "Maybe your right, but it's a girls dormitory after all. I like reading down here, where it's quiet."

James gulped. "Well, maybe you could-"

Just that moment, the clock struck nine. He turned in panic to his friends. Peter was twitching in agitation, and Remus had broken out in a cold sweat. Sirius, however, was looking more and more angry as the seconds passed.

"Look, James." he thundered. "We don't have any more time! The moon will have already risen before we've even gotten to the Shrieking Shack! We've got to act now!"

Lily looked from Sirius to James. "Shrieking Shack? You-you're not planning on going out tonight?" She couldn't help but feel disappointed, almost betrayed. "James! You promised! What about all that stuff about being friends? Were you lying then, too? What to you have to prove by doing this, James? Tell me?"

"Lily!" James shook his head. "Look, I'm so sorry. I don't have a choice in this case. I'll explain what I can later, but now-"

"Prongs!" Sirius had already opened the portrait hole and had one leg out.

"I gotta go, Lily." James turned, taking out the Invisibility Cloak from where it was hidden inside his robes, and flinging it over his friends' heads. And then, just like that, they all climbed through the portrait hole and were gone, leaving Lily behind in their wake.

**And thus concludes another chapter. I'm sorry if it gets a little rushed at the end. It's really late, and I just got home from a party. I'll try to make the next one better. Please review! You have no idea how exciting it is to find out people are actually reading this!**


	4. Back and Forth Bickering

**Disclaimer: Not mine, I swear. **

** Hey everyone, I finally figured out how to allow anonymous people to review this, so, if you don't have an account (or if you're just too lazy to log on, as I usually am) you can review too. I really would appreciate your comments and criticism. Not kidding. Anyway, go ahead and read this next chapter. ;)**

James woke up in the hospital wing. His arm was bandaged, his ribs were bruised and he was fairly sure there was a nasty cut above his right eye.

"And then McGonagall- Oh! James you're awake!"

James recognized the scrawny voice of Peter. He slowly tried to sit up, but his body wouldn't let him and he fell defeated back into bed.

"Easy, Prongs. Don't strain yourself." Sirius suddenly appeared at his bedside, grinning like crazy.

"What happened?" James groaned.

"Depends." Sirius sat down on the bed. "How much do you remember?"

James thought for a moment. "It's kind of a blur- but I remember Remus changed too early-"

"Yeah!" said Peter. "Moony went full-wolf before we even got halfway there! You and Padfoot had to keep him in check. I even bit his toes once or twice." He puffed with pride at this.

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Was this before or after he almost bit your wormy tail off, Wormtail?"

Peter deflated and shrugged.

James laughed. "Go on," he prompted.

Sirius nodded. "Anyway, Moony began to fight and tried to run back toward the castle, but you were faster and blocked the tunnel opening. He must have fought pretty hard, because by the time I got around to you, you were back in human-form and the Whomping Willow woke up and began to bash at you. Thus-" He gestured to the batters and bruises all over James's body.

"How did I get here, then? I don't suppose Moony walked over, apologized, then made sure I was tucked in?"

Sirius shook his head. "Nah- I left Moony with Wormtail for a bit, then flew you over."

"What excuse did you feed the old bat?" James inclined his head to Madame Pomfrey's office.

Sirius shrugged. "Early-morning Quidditch practice, and an unfortunate Chaser who chased his Quaffle right into the Whomping Willow."

James nodded. "Works for me. Where's the food, I'm famished."

"Madame Pomfrey says you're good enough to go down to breakfast like normal." Peter piped up. "We've come to bring you down."

James nodded and got out of bed. The pain in his chest had subsided a little, but he could tell it would be sore for a while.

They checked out of the hospital wing and were halfway down the corridor before James felt safe enough to speak again.

"Moony?" James whispered. "Where is he? Couldn't still be out there, could he?"

Sirius shook his head. "As soon as the sun rose he went straight to bed. Haven't seen him since."

"If you want, we could pay a visit right now." Peter suggested as they approached the Fat Lady.

"Cornish Pixies." Sirius called to her.

"Wha-? Oh, righ', you wanna get in?" She groaned, obviously hungover.

"That would be nice." Sirius smiled up at her.

She swung open and they all climbed through the portrait hole. When they reached the dormitory, Remus was in his bed studying.

"You kidding me, Moony?" Sirius's jaw dropped. "O.W.L.s are over! What more is there to study?"

Remus looked up at him. "Hey. I don't know how you and James manage to get top of the class without even studying, but I actually have to work."

Sirius shrugged. "Suit yourself. Hey, speaking of James, he's come to say hello."

Remus turned to look at James and blanched. "Did I- oh Merlin! Prongs, I'm sorry-"

"Calm down, Moony." James chuckled. "I'm not hurt, I just look it."

Remus smiled stiffly before closing his book and putting it away.

"I think I'll get some sleep." he murmured. "I'll catch you guys later."

The other Marauder's nodded and backed out of the room.

"That went well." James muttered sarcastically.

Sirius laughed. "Relax, Prongs! Moony'll come around sooner or later. Now, quick, let's grab some breakfast before class." They rushed to the Great Hall.

James skidded to a halt just before the great mahogany doors.

"Blimey!" he exclaimed. Peter and Sirius stopped to stare.

"What's the hold up, Padfoot?" Peter cried.

"Lily! Oh, Merlin- I completely forgot about her!" That wasn't entirely true. Lily was on his mind 24/7, but he had just remembered that his newly appointed "friend" status was now probably down the toilet.

"Prongs!" Sirius called. "We don't have time for this! I'm hungry!"

He pushed open the doors. Most people inside craned their necks to see who the newcomers were, and a few waved.

James sat down beside Peter and tried to look cheerful as he spotted Lily, whose green eyes were as large as saucers.

She rushed over and perched herself next to him, staring with worried eyes.

"Oh! James, I- You have no idea how worried I've been! What happened to you?" She reached up and traced the cut above his eye. The sting was almost pleasant under her touch.

"I- er, had a little accident with the Whomping Willow." James told her.

Sirius snorted and James turned a little to glare at him.

Lily didn't miss the glare. She could also see that James was in pain every time he moved his torso. Whatever it was, it didn't look like a _little_ accident at all.

"James! What in Merlin were you doing near the Whomping Willow? I don't suppose this is another one of your stupid games?" she was angry. As angry as she'd ever been. "See how long you can torment the poor tree before it attacks? Now that's a game I'd really like to-"

"Poor tree? Have you seen what it did to me?" James held up his bandaged arm.

"You promised, James!" Lily bore right into his hazel eyes.

"I know. I know and I'm sorry." He was pleading with her. As if she wanted his sympathy. "I didn't have a choice! I just- I-"

He faltered and Lily saw Sirius and Peter exchange scared looks behind him. It was obvious that what he was about to say would affect them too.

"Get to class, James!" she barked at him. "I'll deal with you later. In the meantime, I'll try to find a friend who will actually keep a promise."

Without another word she left his side and strode out of the Great Hall.

James stared after her with longing.

"Prongs!" Sirius's hushed voice brought him out of his reverie. "Have you gone mad?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, please!" Sirius scowled. "As if you weren't about to ruin everything then and there!"

"I wasn't-"

"James!" Sirius looked ready to murder. James could tell by the use of his real name instead of "Prongs" like usual "Lily Evans is a prefect! I know you're head over heels, but we don't know if we can trust her. We don't know if we can trust anyone! Trust me, it's better to just stick to us Marauders."

Peter was nodding vigorously, but James only scowled at his uneaten breakfast plate.

"_What does Sirius know?" _he tought. "_Lily Evans is the most trustworthy person I know! Who else would I tell? Not that I would tell anyone-"_

But James knew Sirius was right. For a minute there, he felt ready to share everything about his world with her. One look in the emerald-green eyes and he was hopeless.

Eventually, Sirius calmed down and the three of them began to walk to class.

"You know," James said suddenly. "I think I'd better visit Remus. I'll bring him some chocolate."

Peter looked from James to Sirius, sensing some type of disturbance.

But Sirius only nodded and started down the opposite corridor to the dungeons for Potions.

James made his way to the Gryffindor common room, then up the steps to his dormitory.

Remus was sleeping. James decided not to wake him up, but instead sat on his own bed and pulled out the Marauders Map.

He searched for her dot down where the rest of the Gryffindors and the Slytherins were having Potions, but found Lily's dot instead opposite his own in the girl's dormitory.

James bit his lip then ran to find a piece of parchment, a quill, and a spare owl.

Meanwhile, Lily was sitting on her bed staring out the window. She had tried to pass the time by reading a book, but was too distracted by the past few days' events.

First Potter and Snape had a bout, then Snape and herself. Then she yells at Potter, but he somehow managed to have her feeding out of the palm of his hand. She yelled at him more, and found herself completely lost.

Lily watched as a tawny-brown owl made it's way across the grounds. She didn't even notice that it was headed directly toward her until it landed on her window sill.

_"How peculiar."_ she thought, but she let the owl in anyway. She detached the note from it's leg and read it.

_**I know you're there. Don't try to ignore me. ~JP**_

Lily couldn't help but smile. She ran around trying to find her own quill and parchment as the owl clicked it's beak impatiently.

_James, besides the fact that you always seem to know where I am borders on creepy, you really should be in Potions right now. ~LE_

She sent the owl off again, only to have it return a few minutes later.

_**So should you. What would people say if they**__**knew prefect Lily **_

_** Evans was ditching classes to talk to borderline creepy boys. I think it's a fair bet to say that you hold nothing over me. ~JP**_

_*******_

___James,____I hold everything over you. I could have easily went to McGonagall as soon as you four left the common room. But I didn't. And now you're arm's in a cast and you can't even move without turning green. For the record, I didn't feel much like going to Potions today. I have enough on my plate. ~LE_

_***_

_**It's Snape, isn't it? **_

_** *****_

Lily inwardly winced at his message. It was true, Lily was avoiding Snape. She felt like a bloody coward for doing it, but she just couldn't handle his pleading looks (directed at her), or his malicious glares (directed at Potter).

_So what if it is? The world won't crash and burn because I didn't feel like talking to Snape today. And it's __not__ because he called me Mudblood. I've heard worse. If I'm a Mudblood, so be it. And as I said before, I don't feel like sharing "The Life and Times of Lily Evans" with you, or with anyone. ~LE_

_***_

_**I don't blame you for not talking to Snape, and I don't think it's because he called you a foul name. And it's my job to pry into "The Life and Times of Lily Evans." That's why I'm such a good friend. That is, if I'm still considered 'friend.'**_

_**~ JP**_

_**P.S: Don't call yourself Mudblood, I don't like it. **_

_*******_

_ You're still a friend. I don't have much of a choice. The minute you walked into the Great Hall looking like you just barely survived a werewolf, I knew I cared too much to not be a friend. Just be glad that I'm a sucker for prats who don't deserve it. ~ LE_

_P.S: I'll call myself whatever I like, thank you very much. _

_***_

'_**Werewolf.' Interesting choice of words there, Evans. And I am glad. I'm infinitesimally glad! I know I don't deserve it, but what hurts even more is that I think you just compared me to Snape. Ouch, Evans, that hurts. But, then again, if we're still friends, I promise not to be a skinny, sickly, oily traitor like him. ~JP**_

_**P.S: You call yourself what you want, but I think I'll call you Lily-flower. Ok by you?**_

_*******_

___I'd rather not talk about Snape, please. And I hope you get around to saying exactly why 'werewolf' is such an interest to you. ~LE_

_P.S: Lily-flower is what my dad calls me. Try again. _

_***_

_**Ok, no talking about Snape. I don't blame you. As for the other thing, I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you. How 'bout this? Make your way down to the kitchens around lunch, and I'll give you all kinds of stories. If you don't know where the kitchens are, all you have to do is tickle the pear on that painting of the fruit downstairs. Try to be gentle. It's only used to being tickled by small, nimble house elves. I'll see you there. ~JP**_

_**P.S: Tiger Lily? Does anyone in your family call you that?**_

_**P.P.S: I think I better head off soon. Remus is waking up, and if he catches me with his owl, he'll be furious. **_

_*******_

_ Tickling pears? How do you and your crew come up with this stuff? I'll be there. 11:30. ~LE_

_ P.S: Yes. Everyone in my family calls me that (except my sister). Why don't you see if you can find more creative nicknames before lunch today?_

Lily sent the final note off with the owl, watching it fly toward the boy's dormitory where she caught a brief glimpse at James Potter's thin wrist opening the window to let it in.

She laughed genuinely for the first time in days. She had never been able to deny the fact that James Potter made her laugh, even when he was acting like a toerag.

She glanced at the empty dormitory and sighed. She didn't like being cooped up here, hiding from Snape. Being a personal favorite of Slughorn's, she wouldn't even need an excuse for being late.

She gathered her things and headed down toward the dungeons, a smile playing at her lips.

**ok, this chapter is slightly less dramatic, and took a completely unexpected turn from when I first started writing it. That's ok, I think I like it this way. If you do too, review it. If you hate it and you want to toss your computer out the window because this whole story makes your eyes bleed, review it. But be nice. I really hope it doesn't make anyone's eyes bleed. **

**Expect Chapter 5 soon! How soon? Depends how fast people review. **

**Ha! Incentive! **

**~J.**


	5. Questions and Moony's Remorse

**Disclaimer: 'Tis not mine. All belongeth to J.K. Rowling.**

James bounced on the ball of his heels, hummed, whistled, anything to keep himself patient for when Lily came. He decided to leave his bandages back in the common room, despite his friends' pleas that he keep them on and eat lunch with the. The house elves were dancing around his feet excitedly, offering him this and that. But James refused, telling them that he'd get something really special once Lily had arrived.

He had to keep reminding himself that this was _not _a date. He was on shaky ground with Lily at the moment, and he couldn't afford to screw everything up by trying to make this romantic.

Suddenly, the portrait of the fruit swung open and all the house elves gathered around it in glee. James was able to see a lock of red hair before it disappeared in the flurry of elves.

He chuckled and walked over. Lily was on her knees looking from one pair of tennis-ball shaped eyes to the next.

"Fudge treacle, ma'am?"

"Pumpkin juice, milady?"

"There is some lovely Shepherd's Pie ready for you!"

"N-no thank you," she said.

"Alright! Clear away! Let her get up!" James called out.

The house elves immediately scurried away, still watching with interest as James walked over to give Lily a hand.

She rose to her feet and brushed the hair out of her face.

"You sure they _like_ doing this? Serving people all the time?" Lily whispered to James as she looked around nervously.

"Are you kidding?" he chuckled. "Just suggest otherwise and they go mad! Better to just accept it and enjoy." James shrugged.

Lily looked around, frowning. "Well, if you say so. Still, the fact that they've been trained to think like that is cruel."

James laughed again. "You're just saying that because you're Muggle-born. Wait, no-" he caught himself just in time. Lily raised an eyebrow. "I mean not that it matters! I don't care much, really! I mean- I care! Being Muggle-born isn't bad. I mean, it's really good! It's just- er, you were raised differently from most purebloods. Different opinions I guess?"

James watched Lily. Her eyebrows knit in confusion- but then she started laughing.

_Way to go, Potter. _James scowled at his shoes. _Now she's laughing at you. _

Lily saw his scowl and quickly stifled her laughter.

"I'm sorry, James. I'm not laughing at you." He glanced up at her face, then quickly moved his gaze to the busy house elves. "Really! You- well, you just sounded so funny, trying not to insult me. James, please, you don't have to be careful around me. I know that I'm Muggle-born, and it does make a difference, no matter what anyone tries to pretend."

James met her gaze again. "But when Snape said-"

"It doesn't matter what Snape said!" Lily cut him off. "That was different!"

He saw the anger and hurt in her eyes as she tried to calm himself down. It was just his luck that he had go go and bring up Snape again! Why couldn't he keep his mouth shut! More importantly, why was he so interested to hear Lily talk about Snape?

"Look," Lily said, taking long, slow breaths. Trying to keep herself calm. "Why don't we start lunch? I'm afraid I didn't have such a good breakfast. _Someone_ cut it off a little early." She looked significantly at him.

"Er- sorry 'bout that." He ran his hand through his hair and chuckled.

Lily laughed quietly too, and they both took seats at the small table the house elves had set for them.

James was amazed how quickly and easily he was able to converse with Lily. As the house elves brought them course after course, Lily and James discussed everything from Professor Binns's teaching style to Gilderoy Lockhart's unnatural wavy hair. Lily even laughed at all of James's jokes, even the one's Sirius said were rubbish.

"Hey Lily?" James said while they were munching on the delicious pudding the elves had brought them. "Look, I wanna explain something-"

"James, please." Lily put down her putting and looked directly into his bespectacled eyes. "I don't want to hear anything that endangers the relationship with your friends. I don't know what you do when you go out, but I can tell that it's something that they don't want you to tell me. Lets face it James, just the other day you were publicly hanging people from their ankles. It seems as though you've grown up pretty fast, but don't let that get to your head. This lunch has been fun- _really _fun- but it's not as though I'm a better friend than Sirius!"

James gaped at her for a moment. "Uh-"

"Really, James!" Lily held up a hand. "I don't want to hear it. Your personal life isn't that important to me."

James was almost insulted by this. He wanted his personal life to matter to her very much. After all, everything she did mattered to him. Probably more than it should.

He sighed in defeat. "If you say so, Evans."

Lily grinned as she cast her gaze over his face. He looked like a disheveled puppy, with his hair hanging in his face, the way it was just then.

"Well, I- I'd better be going." She stood up, gently folding her napkin as the elves swarmed, clearing away her place. James didn't move. He looked up at her with avery peculiar expression on his face.

"What is it?" she asked him. "Aren't you coming?"

"I was just wondering- well, if I could convince Pad- I mean, Sirius, Remus and Peter to let me tell you all about our, er- adventures, would you let me tell you?" He looked very hopeful.

"What?"

James stood up, and as he was at least a head taller than her, he peered down into her face.

"I said, would you let me explain things to you if it were all right with Sirius, Remus, and Peter?"

"You're not going to Confund them or something?"

"What? No!" James was shaking his head. "I mean, just ask them for permission. After all, you have a right to know, and I'm sure I could persuade them to see things my way."

Lily was watching his every move. She could see the mischievous grin playing at the corners of his mouth and the childish malice glinting in his eyes. This was the James Potter that she was used to. The one who laughed with his friends at the expense of others and who couldn't have a care in the world other than his own sphere of interaction.

But this Potter didn't repulse her like he used to. Instead, Lily found herself being pleasantly surprised when she had the urge to laugh.

"Okay, James. You get your friends' permission, and I'll let you tell me all about your little adventures." She grinned.

"You're on!"

He hesitated. Then, before Lily knew what he was doing, he placed a swift kiss on her cheek and ran out of the kitchens, leaving a Lily amongst the elves; bewildered.

James ran through the corridors, replaying the brilliant scene over and over in his head. He couldn't believe that he had just made such a genius move! He stole just one kiss and she didn't flinch, or slap him. No, he'd dazzled her all right. So much, that she was bound to be coming back for more.

But the first thing he'd have to do was find Sirius and get him to let James tell Lily about Remus. As for Remus himself, well, he'd be a little reluctant, but James knew that Remus trusted Lily enough to let her know. However, Sirius would be livid. Letting a non-Marauder know their secrets was something that they had all promised not to do the very first time they became The Marauders. But Lily was a special case. Sirius might not see it, but Lily would be good for him, too. She was, after all, Muggle-born, and James knew Sirius would use her at every chance to piss his family off.

"OI PRONGS!"

James stopped running instantly, and whirled around, only to be knocked to the floor by a dark, disheveled shape.

"Padfoot? Get off'a me!"

He pushed a grinning Sirius away from him. Behind Sirius was Peter, laughing hysterically, and Remus.

"Get your Cloak, Prongs!" Sirius was still grinning. "We're going to Hogsmeade!"

"What? Now? Why?" James brushed himself off as he got to his feet.

"Why?" Sirius laughed. "Exams are over, remember? I'm dying to set off a pack of Dungbombs right outside Filch's office. But, I'm fresh out, and that's why we're going to Hogsmeade."

James laughed. "Brilliant! He won't even see it coming! Can you just imagine the look on his face?"

"'I'll hang you by your toes, you rotten kids!'" Sirius mocked as they set off to fetch James's cloak. "'I'll have you all scrubbing every inch of the trophy room, you just wait!'"

Peter practically burst a gut, he was laughing so hard. Remus only smiled slightly, keeping his eyes on his shoes.

"We've got to cheer him up." Sirius whispered to James. "He's been acting like this all day. Normally, chocolate alone would do it, but I think he's just trying not to show how upset he is over that flesh wound, Prongs."

James glanced over at Remus. "But it isn't that bad!" he whispered back. "Honestly, I'm just glad he didn't run amok all over the grounds. _That_ would be bad."

"Don't bring it up again!" Sirius whispered a little harshly, as James prepared to speak to Remus. "It'll only make him more upset. Believe me, this is the best way. Moony'll be back to his old self in no time!"

"If you say so." James said, shrugging.

The four Marauders collected James's Invisibility Cloak and set off toward a certain statue of a one-eyed, humpbacked witch, opened the hump, and set off toward Hogsmeade.

An hour later, they returned, their arms overflowing with assorted sweets, butterbeers, and of course- dungbombs.

They deposited their stash back in their dormitory before making their way back to Filch's office.

Peter carried the sack under his robes. Sirius was examining the map, making sure no one was coming their way. James, meanwhile, had fallen behind with Remus, who was still looking glum.

"You all right, Moony?"

"Fine." he muttered.

"Really? You don't look fine."

"Neither do you." Remus said this so quietly, James could barely hear it.

"Oh! You're talking about this?" He raised his arm. "Looks fine to me. That Madame Pomfrey, amazing woman! Can't even feel a thing-"

"James!" Remus's eyes glinted hotly from underneath his mop of tawny-colored hair. "Don't pretend that everything that happened last night wasn't my fault. And it's not just you. I almost bit Peter's tail off! And Sirius will never admit it, but I see him flinch every time he moves his neck. The lot of you are in danger with me around. Who knows what could happen next. There's a reason Dumbledore put safety restrictions on my- my condition. You, Peter, and Sirius have no business being out there when I'm like that. I-"

"What a load of rubbish!" James interrupted. Peter craned his neck to see what was the matter, but, seeing the conflict, quickly looked away. "Moony, Dumbledore may have his safety measures, but we have our own. Tell me, do you _like_ being out there alone?"

"I-" Remus began. "No."

"Then that's it!" James cried, clearly thinking that it solved the matter.

"Prongs! That's not what this is about! You could get hurt!"

James looked slightly confused. "What do you mean? Of course this is what it's about. You don't like going out alone, so we're not abandoning you. I can take a little pain, trust me, it's worth it."

"But-" Moony shook his head, exasperated. But finally, he came to his senses.

"One of these days, James, your loyalty will kill you."

James laughed and punched his friend in the shoulder. "Alright. Until then, I'm gonna enjoy your furry little problem."

"We're here!" Sirius called from several meters in front of them. He handed the map to Peter. "Filch is out! Wait 'till he comes back and finds-"

"Someone's coming!" Peter squealed suddenly, the open map still in his hand."

Sirius swore under his breath as James got the cloak out from underneath his robes and threw it over them all. It barely fit. They had to crouch to make sure it covered all of them.

Suddenly, into the corridor came a slightly dazed Lily. James gasped, which earned a hard nudge in the ribs from Sirius.

"OW!"

Lily stopped and glanced around.

"_I'm not falling for that again, Potter." _she thought.

She began to move in the direction from which she heard the noise. The four Marauders held their breath as Lily moved closer and closer feeling out in front of her, when suddenly...

"AHHH!" Lily's foot came in contact with one of the figures crouched under the Cloak and toppled forward, brining the Marauders with her.

She landed with a soft '_oof' _on top of James, as his glasses went flying off in the opposite direction. The others also tumbled out, and they too landed in a heap a little ways off.

"Lily? Is that you?" James squinted, trying to see her face without his glasses. She was still on his chest, so she quickly rolled off and rescued his glasses.

"Yes it's me." she said, gently placing his spectacles on his face.

"Thanks." He murmured, pushing them up the bridge of his nose.

"Oi!" Called Sirius from behind them. "Get your arse off me Wormtail." He managed to claw his way out from the bottom of the dog pile and straightened himself up again.

Lily, too, had gotten up, walked over to the discarded Invisibility Cloak, and picked it up.

"Hmm- seems to me we have a little meeting going on." She raised an eyebrow at James. "Really? I knew you were going to ask them, but crouching in the middle of a corridor really seems like a strange place to do it?"

"Ask us what?" Peter asked, his expression somewhere between scared and curious.

"Er-" James ran a hand through his hair. "Uh, Lily, I haven't got around to asking them quite yet. Completely slipped my mind, actually."

"Oh!" Lily let the cloak slip from her hands. "I see."

She was embarassed. Of course James wouldn't ask his friends right away! What was she thinking? James had other things on his mind. Just because _he_ had been running through her mind all day, that didn't mean _she_ was.

"Well then, I suppose I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing, then."

She shuffled away, Sirius glaring at her as she turned a corner.

"C'mon, Moony!" James called, a little too enthusiastically. His friends were still puzzling after Lily. "You do the honors!"

He handed Remus the sack of Dungbombs, the Marauders watched gleefully as he set them off and a horrible smell filled the corridor. The ran away when they saw Filch coming, laughing hysterically.

It wasn't until they found an empty classroom to hide in that Sirius turned to James and said. "So, Prongs. How was your lunch-date with Lily?"

_**Hey people! **_**I'm sorry this took longer than the others have. I've had a dreadful spell of Writer's Block. Thanks so much for your comments (**_**happy, Fortuna?)**_** and I really hope to put the next one up as soon as I can. But, no promises. Please keep reading and reviewing. Happy New Year!**


	6. Tension

"NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT!"

Sirius was on his feet, his hands balled into fists. Peter just looked from James to Sirius with frightened eyes. Remus looked slightly sick. None of these expressions, however, matched James's. He simply had his arms crossed, his eyes on the ceiling, looking entirely bored.

"Honestly, Padfoot. Listen-"

"No! You listen!" Sirius was shaking his head. "I don't know what's gotten into you these past days, Prongs, but you seem to think that you can go spreading secrets to every girl who walks past!"

"Not to _every_ girl, just Lil-"

"Tell me," Sirius went on, ignoring James completely. "How does she know about the Cloak, huh? How does she know that we can be invisible?"

James raised his palms in defense. "Hey. She figured that one out for herself. She's smarter than you think-"

"Exactly!" Sirius's eyes were flashing with anger. "If she's smart enough to figure out the Invisibility Cloak, she's smart enough to figure out _other things_." He nodded in the direction of Remus, who blanched at his gesture.

"I think-" he said.

But neither James nor Sirius let him say a word.

"That's what I'm saying!" James threw his hands up in exasperation. "We might as well tell her now! If she's going to find out either way, we should tell her, and get her on our side. If she figures it out for herself, she might tell someone-"

"Oh, shut it, James!" Sirius looked disgusted. "You just want a good snog out of her."

James flushed. "That's not-"

"Yes it is! Don't pretend! This obsession you have with Evans is unhealthy, James!"

"Okay, fine. I agree with you. But, you can't deny that she's probably the most trustworthy person!"

"That's not the point!"

Remus and Peter watched their friends go back and forth, arguing over something that would affect all of them. They knew better than to interrupt. Better to let them wear themselves out before they reached a decision.

"You're losing sight of what's important, Prongs!" Sirius was angrier than ever.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!" He stepped closer to James so he could glare straight into his face. "What's more important? A girl? Or your mates? _She's_ not going to understand you, or any of us, no matter how trustworthy she is. Re-think your priorities, James. Tell her, and there _will_ be hell to pay."

With that, he huffed out of the room, leaving James brooding.

"Bloody git-" he muttered, kicking the wall.

"Er- Prongs." Peter finally tried to speak up.

"What!" he said, forcefully rounding on Peter.

"I- er-uh-"

James sighed at Peter's stammering and turned away to glare at the wall again.

"Prongs?"

It was Remus this time. He stood up, watching apprehensively as James turned slowly once more to meet his eyes.

"What d'ya want, Moony?"

"I don't want you to tell her." Remus said shortly.

James blinked once. "Moony, Lily won't tell anyone-"

"Yes, I know." Remus said. "I know Lily wouldn't tell a soul, she's one of the nicest people I know." He took a deep breath before speaking again. "And that's one of the reasons I don't want her knowing. I don't want her to think of me differently, once she knows what I am. I don't want her to feel uncomfortable around me, and I definitely don't want her in any danger."

Remus stood there, facing a bewildered James, who cursed under his breath.

"Fine. I suppose I'll have to respect that."

With those words, he followed Sirius's wake and huffed out of the room.

He was on his way to the Gryffindor common room, when he literally ran into none other than Severus Snape.

"What are _you_ doing here, Potter?" Snape spat.

"I should ask you the same thing." He eyed the sickly Slytherin with distaste. "Shouldn't you be back in your own common room, _Snivellus_? Or are you looking to do some more damage to Lily Evans?"

Snape's face tinged with color. Compared with his usual sallow features, it almost looked like he was blushing.

"I'm not the one doing damage, Potter." he spat. "I'm not trying to corrupt her with my obsession with publicity or my giant, fat head!"

"_Levicorpus!_"

James's instincts worked on their own accord. He grinned with satisfaction as Snape's slender form was wrenched into the air by his own skinny legs. But the euphoria barely lasted a second, for James suddenly remembered Lily, and what she would say if she saw this.

He let Snape fall into a crumpled heap at his feet. He watched as the greasy-haired boy shakily got to his feet.

"You'll pay for that, Potter." he said. "You and your friends. You'll all pay."

With that, he turned and ran back in the direction of his own common room.

James laughed after him. "I'd like to see you try, coward!" he called.

Then, he too turned away and crossed the corridor until he reached the Fat Lady gossiping with one of her friends in her portrait.

"Cornish Pixies." he called to her.

"What?" she looked around, catching sight of James, and then said, "Oh, very well."

James entered the common room to find it only half-full. Apparently, the rest of the Gryffindors celebrated their time-off-studying to enjoy the breezy, summer air.

He walked to his empty dormitory to stash the Invisibility Cloak, which was still hidden away beneath his robes.

Moony's books were still open on his bed. His desire to study, even after exams were over, appalled James. But Remus was right, those subjects that came second-nature to James and Sirius, required actual work from him.

But still, James was glad Sirius was able to drag Remus away from his books. Especially after last night, the chance to laugh was good for him.

James walked over to the window, looking for his friends below. What he saw instead was a glint of red in the sunlight.

Lily stood laughing near the lake, in perfect view from the window where James was currently standing. Her nose wrinkled slightly as a smile cracked across her face from something Frank Longbottom - a year below James - was saying. Next to her, Mary MacDonald said something else, which made her laugh again, throwing her head back and letting the sunlight catch her red hair.

James watched this, completely dazed. With Lily, things changed so rapidly, One moment, he would feel that he was in complete control. The next, he would catch her doing something small - laughing like she was now - and he would lose it all over again.

Shaking himself, he allowed his eyes to move away from Lily and the others, and search again for the Marauders, whom he found sitting beneath the same tree they sat under yesterday, all bent over the Marauder's Map, looking for him, he presumed.

And so, James stuck his hand in his pockets and casually made his way down to the entrance hall. From there, he opened the door, letting the warm air flood onto his arms and face. Then catching sight of the other Marauders near the tree, he went to join them.

"Where've you been, Prongs?" Sirius asked, leaning back on his elbows. Apparently, their little altercation earlier was forgotten.

"We saw you and Snape in the corridor." said Remus, holding up the Map. "Yeah! On the Map!" squealed Peter, as though this little detail wasn't already implied.

James sat down and leaned himself against the tree. "The little prat! I ran into him as he was outside the common room, stalking the corridors."

Sirius wore an expression of deepest loathing and disgust. "Bloody git! Always sticking his ugly nose in places they don't belong! Merlin knows he'd like nothing better to get some dirt on us. Figures he'll become a little hero if he gets Dumbledore to expel us."

James snorted. "I reckon he was just trying to do Lily in. But she's not to happy with him."

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of Evans," he said menacingly. "Why don't you pay her a little visit."

He nodded in the direction of Lily and her friends, now making sparks fly from their wands in an effort to keep bugs away.

Sirius grinned and raised an eyebrow. James knew that grin. That grin had a challenge behind it. "Paying a little visit" to Lily was the very least he had in mind.

"She's with her friends." James said. "Don't want to disturb them, do we?"

Sirius's grin wavered for the slightest second. "No. I suppose your right."

James breathed a sigh of relief.

"Unless- "Sirius's eyes were full of dangerous excitement. He leaned over and whispered his plan right into James's ear, his voice full of warning.

Lily was enjoying the sunlight. Free from her exams, she allowed herself peaceful walks along the lake and time to laugh with friends. She watched as Frank's wand omitted red sparks, causing the beetle crawling on her arm to take flight. Next to him, Alice giggled. Frank and Alice were a year younger than Lily, but she was amiable toward both of them. Mary, on the other hand, standing next to her, was in her year.

None of these people, however, was she particularly close to. She really didn't have anybody she could share her troubles with, no 'best friend' of sorts. She did once- twice, actually. But Petunia was no longer speaking to her, and neither was Severus.

But Lily didn't think about that. Not now while the sun was shining, and her friends were smiling, and a messy-haired, bespectacled boy and his friends were approaching.

"_James?" _Lily thought. She looked closer and saw that it was indeed James, looking slightly reluctant, the devilishly handsome Sirius Black at his side. They were closely followed by Remus and Peter, curiosity in their expressions as their eyes traveled from Lily, to James, to Sirius, and back to Lily.

"Er- hello." Frank greeted them, rather nervously.

"Why, yes! And good day to you, sir!" Sirius gave a rather elaborate bow, grinning profusely. Mary giggled behind her hand.

Sirius didn't miss her laughter. Still bowed over, he turned his head to Alice and gave her an unmistakable wink.

Lily didn't like seeing Sirius take advantage of her friends' emotions. And she certainly felt uneasy about the way the others were eyeing her, so she decided to give Sirius a taste of his own medicine.

Turning on the charm, she looked toward Remus, who was staring at the ground.

"Why, Remus!" she said, smiling. "I haven't talked to you in, _ages_!" She stepped closer. "How's your mother?"

Remus looked slightly scared. He stammered a message that his mother was quite fine and glanced at James, who just shrugged. Sirius's grin, however, wavered, obviously not liking the attention diverted from him.

"You know, Lily," he said putting on the smile once more. "You can see Moony any old day. I, on the contrary, am much more exciting." He spread his arms wide, as though allowing admiring fans to gawk and gaze.

Mary giggled again, much to the delight of Sirius. Lily however acted indifferent.

"Yes, Sirius. How are you?" she asked dully. Then, turning to Peter with a smile. "Oh, Peter! Have you gotten taller?"

James snorted. Lily looked up to share a smile with him. Behind her, Sirius scowled and shot a significant look to James, who understood what he was expected to do.

James flashed her a specially reserved grin. Her own smile faded a bit, a suspicious purse of her lips replaced it.

"Hey, Lily," James spoke softly, raising an eyebrow. "The guys and I have been talking."

"Have you?" she said. "I didn't realize Black was capable of intelligent conversation."

Mary, Alice, and Frank burst into fits of snickering. Sirius's disgusted expression deepened.

"Acutally," said James, trying not to laugh himself. "We were talking about you."

Lily was confused. She knew that James wanted to tell her some kind of secret, but it didn't seem likely that he would blurt it out right in front of Alice, Frank, and Mary.

"James, I don't think now is the right-"

"You see," James went on, a grin full of malice forming on his face, "Sirius and I have a disagreement."

Lily glanced behind her. Sirius wore an expression identical to James's. Peter looked excited and Remus looked slightly worried.

Her gaze then traveled back to James. He was looming over her now, taking full advantage of the near foot he had over her.

"Well," said Lily. "If there's a disagreement, there shouldn't be anything to say, so-"

"Actually," James interrupted again, to the great vexation of Lily. "It's an argument that only you can solve."

"Oh." She blinked. Obviously, this wasn't about their secret after all. "Er- I'll see if I can help."

James stepped closer, glancing over Lily's shoulder at Sirius, who gave him a warning look. He took a deep breath.

"Well, Sirius reckons that you and Snape once snogged." He didn't look directly at her as he said this. "I reckon he's wrong. I reckon you and Snape snogged _twice._"

Lily felt a pang and the rise of many emotions bubbling in her stomach, the strongest of which was fury; pure _rage_.

She felt her face go hot and her vision blurred, causing the face of James Potter to swim before her eyes. She could vaguely hear laughter from the Marauders and angry shouts from her friends.

All that crossed her mind were furious thoughts about Potter. _He _didn't have the right to make assumptions about her friendship with Snape. _He _didn't have the right to pretend to be friend's with her if he only was going to take advantage of her feelings later on. Most of all, he didn't have the right to act so stupid... so, so _immature_!

"Lily?"

James's voice suddenly made everything snap into focus at once. She could see that his face looked concerned, but she didn't care. With her anger now directed on one thing, she knew what she wanted to do. She gathered all her strength and gave one great _push_!

James felt his feet leave the ground, his body tumbling downward. Finally, he felt water seep through his clothes as he landed with a mighty _spalsh! _in the lake.


	7. Winning Remus

**Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling, as well as the setting, and probably most of the plot. Goes to show how original I am. Oh! And the last chapter was so exciting, that I kind of forgot to write a disclaimer. So, I own nothing in Chapter Six either. There. **

Sirius's guffaws echoed along the walls of the entrance hall as he, Remus, Peter, and a sopping-wet James went back inside. He hadn't stopped laughing for a second, even when Mary MacDonald had hit him across the face.

"That- was- brilliant!" he managed to say through his laughs. "Did you- see her- face!" He erupted into an even greater fit of laughter.

James merely grimaced, wringing out his dripping robes. Remus still looked worried, and Peter was on the verge of laughter, but not sure who to side with.

They made their way back up to the common room, where James couldn't see Lily anywhere. He wasn't sure if he was upset or relieved by this detail, but he didn't voice his concerns. Once they reached the dormitory, James changed into fresh robes behind the curtains of his four-poster and used his old ones to whip the back of Sirius's head.

"Hey- Ow!" he said, rubbing the back of his head tenderly. "What did'ya do that for?"

"You arse!" cried James, shaking with anger. "Why did you make you do that to her?"

"Me?" Sirius yelled. "_I _didn't _make_ you do anything! I only thought-"

"You thought," said James, "that you would try and give me an ultimatum! Are you happy now? She won't come near me after that!"

"Well, good!" spat Sirius. "She was getting too smart anyway! Didn't you hear her asking Moony about his mother? She _knows_ something's up already!"

"No she doesn't! She was just trying to deflate your giant-sized head!"

It was Sirius who threw the first punch. Soon, the pair of them were on the floor, trying desperately to hurt the other the best they could. James had the advantage of height, but Sirius was much broader.

"Why?" asked James, once he had pinned Sirius to the floor. "Why did you have to hurt _her_?"

Sirius grunted and tried to kick James off of him, but to no avail.

"Even if you wanted me to keep away from her, why did you have to make _her_ upset?"

This time Sirius gave a great cry and managed to roll over and pin James.

"_I _didn't hurt her, _you _did!" he spat. "_I _didn't make the words come out of your mouth! When you agreed, I thought it meant you finally came to your senses! I thought you'd decided to forget about her!"

James managed to break his grip and pin him again.

"No! You thought you'd see if I _would_ agree to it! You know perfectly well that you would've attacked me if I hadn't!"

"Well, so what?" Sirius stopped struggling under James's arms, apparently the yelling was taking up most of his attention. "I couldn't have you strutting around, spreading secrets! Mates are more important, Prongs!"

James scowled and moved back, letting Sirius get to his feet.

"Well, you got what you wished for." he muttered. "Lily won't be speaking to me for a while."

"Sorry, mate." Sirius was tending a bruise on his left forearm. "It's for the best, you know."

"Yeah, sure. For the best." he repeated, lying back down on his four-poster and drawing the curtains around him. He heard the other Marauders shuffling about, but no one spoke. Soon, they headed down to the Great Hall for dinner, leaving James behind. The sky outside gradually became darker, and James felt himself drifting off to sleep...

Lily wasn't crying. She had decided not to waste her tears on Potter. The whole thing was quite ridiculous, actually. He had seemed pretty mature, but he was still Potter. Lily knew better than anyone that she and Potter just didn't mix. It was a known fact. She would be better off just never associating with him ever again.

But that was impossible and she knew it. There was the simple matter of her pushing him in the lake. No way that would stay quiet for long.

Lily sighed and buried her face in her hands. If only she hadn't let her temper get the better of her! Then she wouldn't have to face him and apologize.

_Who says you need to apologize?_ asked a voice inside her head.

She thought about this. What had she _really_ done wrong? Other than pushing him in the lake, that is. He deserved it for being so immature. Other than that, _he_ was the one who said those things about Snape and her. _He_ was the one who wouldn't leave her alone. _He _broke promises. _He_ did stupid things. The only thing _she _did wrong was believe that he had changed.

And push him into a lake, but that could be overlooked.

Lily was so absorbed in her own thoughts she didn't hear Mary walk into the dormitory.

"Hey." Mary said tentatively. She held the _Daily Prophet _in one hand, and a cup of tea in the other.

Lily jumped.

"Oh, Mary! It's just you!"

"How are you?" Mary asked, handing her the tea and sitting down on the bed opposite her.

Lily smiled. "Quite well. You?"

"I- I'm fine." Mary frowned, evidently confused. "You sure? You seemed pretty upset before."

Lily shrugged. "Maybe. But Potter always upsets me. He's such an arse." She sipped her tea.

"Really?" Mary looked surprised. "I always thought you had a thing for Potter!"

Lily nearly spit all her tea but supressed the urge with a gag, followed by a fit of coughing.

"Potter!" she said through her coughs. "Merlin's beard! What makes you think that?";

Mary was so stunned by her reaction that it took her a moment to respond.

"I, uh- well he's always fancied you, and I just thought- well, you were mad at Snape... And you and Potter- well, your always dancing around eachother- didn't he take you on a lunch date just today?"

Lily stared at her with her mouth open.

"One," she said finally. "He does _not _fancy me. Two, it wasn't a _date_. He was just showing me the kitchens! Three! We do _not_ dance around eachother. Four, I'm not mad at Snape because of _Potter_, I'm-"

"All right!" Mary interrupted, exasperatedly opening the _Prophet_. "I get it. You don't like Potter."

"Good!" Lily fumed, finishing her entire cup of tea before speaking again.

"Any news?"

Mary looked up from her newspaper.

"Just the usual." she said. "You-Know-Who's reign of terror... hundreds more dead... Ministry in a panic..." She scowled and put the newspaper down.

"Same thing every time." Lily muttered. "You'd think Voldemort would run out of people to kill."

Mary shuddered. "Don't say the name, please."

"Right. You-Know-Who. Sorry."

Lily kept forgetting how feared Voldemort's name was. Perhaps it was just beacause she was raised by Muggles, but being frightened by the name seemed so ridiculous to her.

_James didn't mind it_.

Lily was surprised by herself for thinking that. How did she even _know_ that?

Well, the answer to that was easy. She had said Voldemort's name during their arguement two nights ago, and he didn't shudder or wince or do any of the things people usually did when Lily said his name.

_Was that only two nights ago?_

Lily shook thoughts out of her head. She was driving herself crazy with all thinking that she was doing. She just needed a good sleep.

So, saying goodnight to Mary, she placed her head on the pillow and closed her eyes. She stayed like that for three hourse before she actually fell asleep...

The night passed. And then the day. And then another day. The end of the school year was rushing toward them faster than the Hogwarts Express, and still James could think of no way to talk to Lily.

She treated him coldly. She would walk by with a toss of her hair without saying a word.

This made James crazy.

Sirius's mood was also grim and distant, though James had the feeling this had more to do with the imminent return to the Black's home and not their previous bout.

Lupin was doing his best to keep thier spirits up.

"Why don't we go down to the Quidditch Pitch?" he asked one morning at breakfast. "Play two-on-two?"

"You can't fly for your life." James reminded him dismally.

"And Peter'd only run into the stands again." Sirius added with a frown.

Peter looked up at the sound of his name, his mouth full of scrambled eggs.

But James wasn't paying any attention as Peter choked down his food in order to argue with Sirius, for James was staring at the red-headed figure headed straight toward _him_.

He sat up straighter, ruffled his hair, and ran his tounge over his teeth to clear them of spare bits of egg or bacon. She was getting closer, and closer, and closer...

"Remus." she said once she arrived. James deflated like a balloon. It was too much to hope for.

Remus looked up, noticing for the first time that she was there.

"Yes?"

"McGonnagal wants me to remind you that there's a prefect meeting this afternoon. The last of the year."

"Yeah, alright I'll be there." Remus said, one eye on James who stared up at Lily with hurt in his eyes.

Lily nodded once and turned on her heel. Then she was gone.

James turned back to his breakfast but didn't eat. After about five minutes he excused himself on the pretense of packing and left the Great Hall.

Lily's bags were already packed. Between avoiding James and Severus, she had had a lot of free time hiding out in her room. When McGonnagal had told her to remind Remus of the meeting, Lily was loath to walk directly to where the four friends were standing. One friend in particular had her stomach twisting in knots. She noticed the way he had run his hands through his hair just before she arrived. For some reason, that simple gesture nearly taken the breath from her. Whether from pure anger or... something else, Lily wasn't sure. She wasn't really keen to find out either.

Which is why she found herself arriving for the prefect's meeting nearly thirty minutes early. The less time she spent hiding in her room with nothing but her thoughts, the better.

To her surprise, the meeting room wasn't empty, as she had expected it to be.

"Remus?" she asked in surprise.

Remus jumped. He hadn't noticed her walk in.

"Whoa! Sorry Lily. I- I didn't notice you." Remus said sheepishly.

Lily smiled. "That's alright. I didn't expect anybody to be here so early."

"Yeah... me neither."

Lily took a seat opposite Remus. She twiddled her thumbs and played with the chain around her neck. Anything to distract her. Remus just stared silently at his hands folded neatly in his lap. His eyebrows were furrowed and he seemed to be thinking hard.

"Had a nice breakfast?" Lily asked, unable to bear the silence any longer.

Remus looked up. "Oh, yes. It was nice. You?"

"Yes. I enjoyed it."

There was a pause.

"Er- any reason you came down so early?" Remus asked.

"Oh!" For some reason, Lily was thrown off by the question. "No reason. I've already finished packing, so I didn't really have anything else to do."

"I see."

Another pause.

"What about you?" Lily asked.

Remus shrugged, still staring at his lap. "Same as you, I guess."

"Really?" Lily raised an eyebrow skeptically. "I would have thought you'd be with that pack of wolves of yours."

Remus's head snapped up in alarm.

"What did you say?"

"I- I just thought you'd be with your friends, that's all." Lily didn't understand his reaction at all. Did she say something to offend him?

"Oh," said Remus, calming down again. "I thought you said something else."

"Er- ok."

Lily decided not to press. Remus didn't seem to be keen on the subject and was blatantly looking in every direction other than Lily's.

But Lily wouldn't allow his silence. She dove right into conversation about nonsense things. Homework, the weather, her plans for the summer... anything that crossed her mind came tumbling out of her mouth. While the conversation was a little one-sided at first, Remus soon piped up with what _he _planned to do over the summer.

The two of them were engaged in excellent conversation in no time.

"Someone told me" said Remus, when they were discussing their O., "that if I studied any harder, an encyclopedia would burst out of my ear."

Lily giggled. "Bet that was James!"

Remus looked surprised. "No, Sirius."

"Oh." Lily silently cursed herself.

Remus seemed ready to ask her something, but, luckily, Lily was spared another uncomfortable because people finally began arriving for their meeting.

She conversed politely with the prefects from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff and ignored the jeers and scowls from the Slytherins. She found her hand nervously hopping to the chain on her neck whenever someone asked about the James-in-the-lake episode.

"Just a bit of a heated arguement." Lily mumbled to a couple of Hufflepuffs.

Mark Abbot laughed. "Yeah, sure seemed _hot_ to me."

"Did you _cool him down_, Evans?" asked Amos Diggory, apparently pleased with his own pun.

Lily laughed to be polite, but the only thing she really wanted to do was crawl under a rock. "Yes, I'm sure he was quite cool after that."

Amos and Mark were still laughing when Remus appeared at Lily's shoulder.

"May I join you?" he asked.

They nodded. "We were just talking about Lily and James's _hot date_."

"I said _heated debate,_" Lily mumbled. But neither of them was listening. They were laughing so hard that Amos was having trouble standing. Both were wiping tears from their eyes.

Remus raised an eyebrow at Lily, and she mouthed the word _help_.

Remus turned to face them at once. "Speaking of James, can you believe the way he killed Hufflepuff in that last match? But, to be honest, I think its really the fault of their Chasers, hmm?"

The smiles instantly turned into angry grimaces. Neither Hufflepuff seemed to be keen on the idea of standing by while their Quidditch skills were insulted.

"Potter couldn't Chase a Quaffle if it hit him on the head!" spat Abbot.

"That game was pure luck on his part!" agreeed Diggory.

The two of them began throwing insult after insult at Remus, who was quite red in the face, questioning his intelligence and his sanity. Lily was rather touched that Remus would embarass himself like this just to spare her.

"Now boys," she interjected. "I enjoy a Quidditch debate just as much as the next girl, but, as prefects of our respective Houses, shouldn't we simply agree to disagree? Set an example?"

Abbot and Diggory grudgingly turned away from Remus, who smiled gratefully at her.

"Thanks." he said.

"I should thank you." Lily smiled.

"Well then, you're welcome." Remus smiled at her for a moment, but the smile disappeared just as quickly. He seemed to be lost in thought.

Lily hesitated for a moment, unsure what to say. But just then McGonnagal strode in and instructed them all to have a seat so the final meeting could begin.

Lily wasn't paying much attention. She played with the chain on her neck, all the while trying (unsuccessfully) to keep her mind off of James.

Remus too seemed distracted, but Lily couldn't figure out what he was thinking.

"Miss. Evans?" McGonnagal's stern voice peirced through her internal rant.

"Yes Professor?" Lily asked, embarassed that she had been caught unawares.

McGonnagal persed her lips. "The meeting has just ended, all your classmates are leaving."

Lily turned around. Indeed, her peers had risen from the table and were now huddled around the door waiting for their turn to leave.

Lily glanced around and saw that Remus, too, had been quite surprised by this. She caught his eye and shrugged then rose and crossed the room to where the others stood.

Quite suddenly, she felt something like a puff of air on the back of her neck. She turned around, but only saw Remus standing there, staring at the floor.

Deciding it was just a draft that she hadn't felt earlier, Lily turned and walked away from the room.

Remus, however, had just done one of the most daring things in his life thus far. He did something that not only jeopardized his reputation and friendship with Lily, but those of his friends too.

So just as Lily left the room, Remus bent down and picked up a severed gold chain from the floor.

"James! I need to talk to you!"

James looked up from his packing to see Remus standing in the doorway out of breath.

"Can't it wait, Moony? Let me finish packing."

"No! It's got to be now!"

Sirius glanced back at James and shrugged. Then he returned to his own packing.

"Alright Moony, what d'ya need?"

"Outside." Remus whispered, guiding James out of the dormitory and onto the staircase outside.

"What? What's the big secret?" James was finding Remus's behavior rather peculiar and sincerely hoped that it wasn't part of something secret.

Remus cast a furtive glance around as though checking for people lurking nearby then opened his hand to reveal a familiar gold chain.

"Hey, isn't that-" James paused. Then his eyes widened in horror.

"Remus! This is Lily's!" he said with the strained voice of someone who is trying to exclaim something very quietly.

"I know, don't you think you ought to return it to her?"

"Moony? Are you off your rocker? She won't go near me! She'll probably thinkg I'm the one who stole it, not you!"

"She might, if she knew that you were the one returning it to her."

James's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that tomorrow, on the train, I'll tell Lily I found her necklace and left it in our compartment. When she goes to get it, you'll be waiting, and then-" Remus took a deep breath. "And then you tell her everything."

The word 'everything' seemed to hang in the air for a moment. James looked up at Remus wearing and expression of mixed shock and hopefulness.

"Everything?" he finally asked. "You mean it?"

Remus nodded.

"What made you chang your mind?"

Remus shrugged. "We were just talking today. We helped each other out. And I realized that she would probably help me out even if she knew what I was, probably even more. I realized that I look at her the same way I look at you or Wormtail or Padfoot, and you three know. I don't feel like keeping that secret from her anymore. So, as your friend- and as hers- I'm giving you this necklace."

He held out the gold chain and James took it.

"What about Padfoot?" he asked quietly.

Remus shrugged. "He might come around eventually. Until then, I'd just keep it a secret."

James smiled. "I owe you this, know that? This is great! Excellent! I-" He broke off into a fit of exuberant laughter, clutching one end of the chain and swinging it around like a victory prize.

The two of them walked back into the dormitory, pretending as though nothing had happened and secretly enjoying the idea that, by tomorrow, there would be another than knew of thier secret.


	8. Everything

**Hey dere, hi dere, ho dere! It's been taking me longer to post but that's just because I've been so busy with school and stuff. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this next bit, I don't own these characters, and (as always) comment in the comment boxy- thingmabob. **

Lily woke up early. Early morning was her favorite time of day, especially in the summer. The sun was just beginning to rise over the hills in the window and the cool glow of the early morning crept across the floor of the girl's dormitory. Lily stuck out her hand and admired the way the light bounced off her skin and the way her red hair glimmered. She wasn't a vain girl, but she felt pretty at that moment. No one was awake to see her, but that didn't matter. She felt good.

She got out of bed and lightly crossed the room in her socks. Carefully, so it wouldn't squeak, she pushed open the window. Across the way was the boy's dormitory. Lily was angry with herself when she thought of James, asleep in his bed, his hair more unruly than ever. However, she allowed herself to keep thinking of James since she was in a good mood and she found that forcing herself to keep her mind off James made her rather irritable.

Hagrid was also awake this early, completing his morning chores, Fang trotting at his heels. She watched him move along, until Hagrid, looking up, saw Lily in the window and waved.

Fang, too, caught sight of Lily and began barking as loudly as he could.

"Shut yer mouth, yeh mangy mutt!" Lily heard Hagrid yelling from her window.

She laughed and yelled, "Good morning to you too, Fang!"

People, having been woken by all the commotion, were throwing open windows to catch the end of the sunrise or waved their hellos to Hagrid and Fang, or else to finish some last minute packing.

And, just like that, the peace was broken.

From behind the windows of the boy's dormitory, Lily heard squeals and bangs. Obviously, the Marauders were hunting down all their last-minute possessions. Muffled conversations were coming from the crack in their window. Lily stared at it for a moment until, without warning, it flew open.

She ducked out of sight. She didn't want James to see her. She didn't want to deal with him this early.

Finally she risked a peek over the edge of the sill and found, to her relief, that it was only Peter, recovering from a dungbomb that was haphazardly left in his suitcase.

"What are you doing, Lily?"

Lily jumped again. The voice, Mary's, had come from within her own dormitory that time.

"Ahh- nothing." she said quickly. "Just enjoying the last sunrise of the school year." She laughed nervously.

"Hmm." Mary said, raising and eyebrow and glancing toward the open window of the boy's dormitory in which James now stood, holding his nose, patting Peter on the back.

Lily laughed nervously again. "Yep." Her hands went to her neck to play with the gold chain she always wore.

"Oh no!" she gasped suddenly.

"What is it?" asked Mary, alarmed.

Lily groped around her neck and got up to search her bed. She couldn't believe it.

"My necklace! It's gone!"

Mary swept Lily's bed with her eyes once before doing the same to the rest of the room. "You mean the old chain you wear?"

"That's the one!" Lily said, now digging through her carefully packed trunk looking for it.

The other girls were beginning to stir. Lily and Mary were still frantically looking for Lily's chain.

"Emma? Em!" Mary was shaking their friend Emmeline from her sleep.

She grunted once and turned away.

"C'mon Em! This is serious!"

Emmeline's eyes flew open.

"He's not in here, is he?"

"Who?"

"Sirius!"

"What?" Mary looked confused. "No! The _situation_ is serious. I didn't mean _Sirius Black_."

Emmeline let out a breath of relief. "Don't scare me like that! Could you imagine? If Sirius Black came in here and saw me looking like this, I'd jump off the Astronomy Tower."

Mary's eyebrows shot up her forehead.

"Why does it matter if Sirius saw you in your pajamas?" Lily asked.

Emmeline rolled her eyes. "Please! Don't you have eyes? He's, like, the most good-looking thing to walk these halls since Nearly-Headless Nick died."

"Besides," said another girl, Hestia, as she pulled on her shoes. "Mary _loves_ him."

She smiled evilly as Mary turned scarlet.

"Sirius Black is a cold-hearted, malicious, disgusting old toerag." Mary said. Lily thought it sounded a lot like she was trying to convince someone, probably herself.

Hestia shrugged and Emmeline said "Suit yourself."

"Look!" said Lily, diverting the attention from Mary's mortified face. "I have more important things to worry about than boys, so-"

"Yeah?" Emmeline interrupted, an indignant look on her face. "What if James Potter walked through these doors right now and saw you."

Lily looked down at her worn-out nightgown with holes in the sleeves. Her hair was a mess and there was still sleep in her eyes.

She suddenly understood all the boy drama.

"Like I care what Potter thinks of me." Lily said. "Right now, boys are the farthest thing from my mind."

"That's right." said Mary, who seemed to have just come out of her reveree. "Her problems are worse than boys. It's jewelry."

Emmeline and Hestia whipped their heads around to look at Lily with shock and fear in their eyes.

"A- a necklace?" Hestia asked.

Lily nodded.

"Did you... lose it?"

She nodded again.

"Oh no!" cried Emmeline, jumping up at once to frantically search the area around her bed.

Soon all four girls were on their hands and knees looking high and low for Lily's gold chain. Lily had never felt more grateful to these girls. They didn't even know the sentimental value that necklace held for Lily, but still, here they were, bending over backwards, sifting through some of the most ridiculous girly junk that had piled up in the corners over the years.

"Guys, I think we should just head down to breakfast." Lily said after half an hour of searching.

"Oh, Lily." said Emmeline, shaking her head. "I'm so, so sorry."

The look on Emmeline's face actually made Lily laugh, despite the miserable pit in her stomach. "It's okay. Really! You guys are so great to help me look, but it's the last day of school! We should be enjoying it!"

The girls agreed. Lily quickly changed into her robes and hastily ran a comb through her hair. Then, throwing all the possessions she had just unpacked into her trunk, she ran downstairs to join everyone else as they made their way into the Great Hall for their final meal before they all left for the summer holidays.

As soon as breakfast was over, and everyone had said the goodbyes that they wouldn't be able to on the train, Lily and her friends were packed into self-pulling carriages going to Hogsmeade Station to board the train home.

A few carriages down the road, the four Marauders sat in silence, a rather rare situation for them.

James knew why Sirius wasn't speaking. It wasn't unlike him around this time of year, as it meant going back to his house in Grimmauld Place where he would have to spend his summer holidays with his disapproving parents and his disgustingly eager-to-please brother.

James didn't exactly know what kind of comforting could be done in this situation, so instead, he took Lily's chain out of his pocket and began playing with it to relieve some of his own tension.

"What is that?"

James was startled to hear Sirius's voice. He looked up to see Sirius staring at Lily's gold chain in his hands.

"This? Er- well, it's a chain." he said stupidly.

"I can see that." Sirius said, an amused smile playing on his lips. "And where did you get it?"

"I, uh-" James glanced at Remus, who was looking far too guilty. "Found it." he said finally.

"Found it? Where?" Sirius moved a little closer so as to get a better look at it.

"In the, er- bathroom?" For some reason, it sounded like a question.

Sirius's smile was suddenly huge.

"You found a _girl's_ necklace in the _boy's_ bathroom?" he asked.

James knew he'd been caught in the lie. His best chancenow was to do exactly what Sirius expected him to.

He sighed. "Well, I guess you found out my secret."

Remus's eyes were practically bursting out of his skull and he was shaking his head so violently that James seriously thought he might have a concussion.

"The truth is..." said James, "I've been using the girl's bathroom for the past couple of months. Just to see what it was like."

Remus's jaw dropped and Peter snorted louder than he ever had. The best though was Sirius's genuine, appreciative laugh that filled the whole carriage with a lighter, comical mood.

"You see," said James in a lower voice so that all the Marauder's had to lean in to hear what he was saying. "I just found this gooorrr-geeeoouss necklace and I couldn't resist! What can I say? It makes me feel pretty!"

Sirius, Remus, and Peter were now clutching their sides in laughter as James modeled the necklace for them, flipping his unruly hair and batting his eyelashes in a very feminine manner.

"Oh, Jamie!" called Sirius in a mock-girl voice. "You little rascal! Didn't your boyfriend give you this necklace?" Sirius moved his shoulders back and forth in a way that made it clear he was joking.

James put his hand to his mouth. "Whoops! You caught me! Wormy-boy here gave it to me!" He crossed his legs and leaned over to giggle at Peter

Tears were now streaming from Remus's eyes, but Peter had stopped laughing and his eyes were darting from James to Sirius and back again.

"No I didn't! I really didn't! That's gross!"

James finally let go of his charade and laughed normally.

"Relax Pete, it's all just good fun."

Sirius stopped playing too, the remnants of his laughter still on his face.

"I dunno, Prongs. I mean, I could see why Wormy would think you were serious. You make a pretty convincing girl."

James stared incredulously at him but Sirius just shrugged as though it were a simple matter of fact.

"Yes, and you make a good house pet," he said. "But you don't here me talking."

Sirius suddenly got down on all fours, stuck his tongue out, and began panting like a dog.

"Good boy." said James, patting Sirius on the head.

Sirius barked once. Then, out of the blue, a huge, black shaggy dog was standing where Sirius had once been.

Remus instantly whipped his head around to see if anyone outside of the Marauders had seen it, forgetting, for one instant that they were in a private carriage. Peter's eyes widened at Sirius's bold recklessness. James just raised an eyebrow.

"Couldn't resist, could you? Don't bother changing back. It's easier to look at you when I don't actually have to see your face."

The dog growled in James's general direction before turning back into Sirius once more.

"Relax mate." he said to Remus, who looked as though he had just barely escaped the fight of his life.

Remus let out a breath.

"You shouldn't do that." he said.

"Do what?" asked Sirius, now examining his fingernails.

"You know what I mean!" Remus hissed.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Look, Moony. Lighten up! I know what I'm doing. We can't get caught! The only way anyone's gonna find out our secret is if we tell them, and that's not going to happen." He beamed confidently at each one of the Marauders.

Was it just his imagination, or did Sirius's gaze linger a bit too long on James?

Well, it didn't matter. He already had the necklace and he knew exactly what he was going to do with it. So what if Sirius didn't approve? It didn't concern him. However, his plan did concern Remus, whose expression was now apprehensive.

"Hey!" said Sirius to Remus. "What's gotten into you?"

"N- nothing." was Remus's response.

"He's just nervous," interjected James. "There's two more full moons that he's got to spend alone, and he's nervous about it. Aren't you Moony?"

Remus looked into James's face with a mixture of fear and gratitude.

"Yes," he said. "That's it."

At that point, the carriage stopped and the boys all went out to board the train.

As soon as they were comfortably seated in their own compartment, they began to laugh and joke again, despite the ever-deepening pit in James's stomach. The closer they came to King's Cross, the more desperate Sirius seemed to be for a good laugh. James almost thought he was trying to compensate, trying to fit a summer's worth of laughs into a single train ride.

James allowed Sirius to take free reign on all the festivities. His mind was racing as fast as the Hogwart's Express was and he couldn't help but question if he was doing the right thing.

Should he risk his best mates for some girl? The thing was that it wasn't just _some girl_, it was Lily Evans. And besides, if all went according to plan, Sirius would never find out anyway. At least, not until the moment was right.

When, at last, the train finally pulled into the station, The Marauders made their somber goodbyes, promising to write over the holidays and visit, if possible. Sirius's face was grim as he approached James.

"Listen," he said. "You've got to let me come stay with you over the summer."

James was surprised. "Uh- sure! I'll see what I can do to persuade my mum-"

Sirius shook his head. "No. I mean, I need to come with you _right now_."

"What? No. Sirius, I mean, it would be great, but I can't let you. Just go home for a little bit, and I'll see you soon, all right?"

Sirius struggled a bit between arguing and acceptance. Finally he said, "Fine."

James smiled, the panic escaping him.

"Listen mate," Sirius said. "You can't let me stay all holidays with them." He nodded toward his family who were staring condescendingly at everyone who walked past. "I"m counting on you."

James laughed nervously. "Bit of pressure, mate."

Sirius didn't smile. "I'll see you _soon_." Then he turned and walked back to his family miserably.

James watched his best friend go with a grim feeling. However, he didn't have much time to dwell on it when he heard a little cough directly behind him.

He whirled around and saw Lily there, her arms crossed, her eyes blazing.

"Remus says you found my necklace." she said.

"Wha-? Oh, yes!"

James dug around in his pocket, but he couldn't find the necklace.

"Er- I must've left it in my compartment."

Lily sighed.

"Well then, I'll get it. Which compartment?"

James shook his head. "I'll just show you."

He climbed back onto the train, Lily at his wake. They moved through the isles until they reached the compartment previously occupied by the Marauders.

Lily went inside first.

"Where is it? I don't see it?"

James stepped in after her.

"Probably fell under the seat."

Lily bent down and reacher her arm under the seat to grab her lost necklace. As she did so, she heard the door close with a click.

She froze.

Slowly, her fingers closed around the chain as her head turned to stare at a very guilty-looking James.

She rose, holding the chain up so James could see it.

"I've got it," she said. "Thanks for your help."

James still didn't move out of the way of the door.

"Will you let me go now?" Lily asked.

James didn't meet her eyes, but he started at the chain in her hand before shaking his head "no."

"James!"

Lily lunged for the door, but James easily held her back. As she squirmed uner his strong grip, she reached for her wand, but James was too quick. He had already taken her's.

"James! What are you doing? Are you crazy."

"Lily, could you please be quiet? People might come running."

"Well good! I'm being held here against my will! Get your hands off me!"

Lily kicked him in the shins as hard as he could. James didn't cry out, buy his grip on her slackened. She used the moment to push herself free.

Staring at him with the most contemptuous look James had ever seen, Lily said, "Give me my wand, James."

James smiled. Lily couldn't believe it. That arse was smiling right now!

Lily must have looked livid, because the smile on James's face had suddenly vanished and a look of fear replaced it.

"Whoa! Lily, calm down!"

"Calm down?" she cried. "You tricked me into following you here for some strange, perverted reason-"

"No, no!" James whispered, trying to keep the volume down. "I just need to tell you something! Look, I know I've been a jerk lately-"

"You're forgiven!" spat Lily. "As long as you let me go!"

James just kept shaking his head. "No! I really have something to say!"

Lily was so angry, she was seeing red, but the logical part of her brain saw that James was the one with the power in this situation and she wasn't getting out until James had talked his fill.

"Fine." she said and she grudgingly sat down on one of the seats. "Make it quick."

James was so surprised and relieved, that for a moment, all he could do was stare. But then, he seemed to have come back into his senses and he sat down in the seat opposite Lily.

"As I said," he began. "I've been a jerk lately, and I wanted to explain why."

Lily didn't interrupt like James expected her to but just sat there scowling.

So James took a breath and went on. "You see, I wanted to tell you this before, but you made me get permission from my friends first. Remember?"

Her eyes snapped up. He had her attention now.

"Well, when I asked them, they were a little worried. You were right when you guessed that this has a pretty major impact on them too."

James paused again, hoping Lily would say something, but she didn't.

"Down by the lake," he said, and Lily instantly grimaced. "They were worried that I might- er- choose you over them. They were worried that I was losing sight of what was important. So, to prove that I- er- was still loyal to the pack, I guess, they made me- er- do what I did."

Lily's eyes blazed.

"You did that because your friends told you to?" she asked him. When he nodded she said, "James! What kind of friend makes up an ultimatum like that? You can't let Sirius push you around-"

"Just listen!" James interrupted. "I could have said no! Sirius knew it! If I had said no, then we would have just duked it out later and everything would be fine. But I did what he said because he was right! I _was_ losing sight of the important things. He's my best mate! But, recently, all I've been doing was being with you, and that means my secret - _their _secret - is in jeopardy."

Lily just shook her head in angry amazement. "What on earth could this secret possibly be?"

James smiled. "Here's the thing. I finally convinced them that you were trustworthy enough to handle it, that you wouldn't go running off to tell McGonagall."

Lily rolled her eyes. "I would never do that, James-"

"_I _know that," he said. "But they didn't. Now they do. So now, as long as you don't talk about it to anyone, including them, they'll let you know."

"I can't talk to them about it?" she asked suspiciously."

He shrugged. "It's a long story. Letting you know the secret is a big step, but letting you in on secret meetings is a little too much right now. It's no big deal. We don't talk about it much amongst ourselves if we can help it."

Lily seemed satisfied. James sighed in relief. Remus had helped him come up with that lie, but he didn't actually think Lily would fall for it.

"All right, then," said Lily. "What is this big secret of yours?"

And he told her.

Everything.


	9. The Aftermath

**Hey everyone! I don't own these characters. I bet you all have just been dying to find out what Lily is going to say now that she knows James's and the Marauders secret! Well, lucky you, because you're going to find out right... now. **

**P.S: haven't gotten many reviews lately, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM NOT ONLY WELCOMED, REQUESTED!**

**Thanks!**

Silence.

That's all there was.

Outside, people were talking and laughing as they reunited with their families or hunted down belongings.

But none of that reached the pair of Gryffindors sitting in their compartment. Lily's expression hadn't changed. She still stared at him with angry defiance.

James was beginning to get worried. Had she not understood? Maybe she didn't believe him. Or worse. What if she didn't care?

"So," Lily said finally. "Let me get this straight."

She paused for a moment and when James nodded, she went on.

"Remus is a werewolf," she said. James nodded his confirmation. "And the three of you are illegal Animagi because you want to be there with him when he changes?

"Uhh- yeah. Basically." James said, still apprehensive about her reaction.

Lily didn't say anything more. Still wearing the same expression she turned her head to her knees. Her red hair fell like a curtain, hiding her face. Slowly, she reached up her hand to wipe something from her face. A tear?

"Hold it! Are you crying?" James was on his feet now, half wanting to reach out to her, half unsure. _This_ kind of reaction was definitely not what James had expected.

Lily looked up at him with a sheepish expression.

"You must hate me." she said.

James stared at her with incredulity.

"Hate you? What the hell are you talking about?"

Lily felt awful. "All this time. All I've been doing is complaining about you and thinking of myself. What _I _felt. And all this time Remus has had to live through being a werewolf! It's horrible!"

James ran his hand through his hair. "Don't feel bad. Remus doesn't want pity anyway-"

"And what's worse," Lily went on, completely ignoring James. "The entire time I was thinking that you needed to be kinder to me than to your friends. I never even thought about them! All of you - you're so brave! Being an Animagus takes really, really advanced magic! And you all did for your friend! I- I- I wish I had that kind of bravery."

She didn't like it, but tears kept springing to Lily's eyes. She was sick of this! Every time she was with James her emotions ran haywire. How was it that she could be ready to murder him one second then bawling her eyes out the next?

James still had his hand hanging in midair ready to help, but unsure if she wanted him to.

Finally, he just decided to touch her face and wipe away her tears.

"Please stop crying," he said. "I don't want your family to think I made you cry."

Lily laughed. "Well, you _did_!"

James smiled. "Yeah, well- _They_ don't have to know that."

Lily laughed again. "Speaking of which, we ought to go find them before they worry."

The two of them left the compartment. As they made their way

Then her face became serious again.

"Look," she said, turning to face James.

"Yeah?"

She sighed. "These last few days have been... no, I don't want to start with that."

James was confused. What was she trying to say?

"Er- I'm not so sure how to explain this," Lily tried again. "But I want to try again."

Confused, James didn't say anything, hoping she would explain a bit more.

Lily bit her lip. "I mean, this last week of school was just too much, you know? It's like, one minute Sev is my friend, and then he's not. And then I yell at you, and then I'm your friend, then I'm not. And now I find out about Remus and the rest of you. Things are just, I don't know, moving quickly." She looked into his face, begging him with her expression to understand. "You know?"

James smiled. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

She gave him a relieved smile. "Good. All I'm saying is that we should just start over. Just be mates." She nudged him with her shoulder.

James laughed. "You got it, mate." This was good. This was comfortable. No pressure to impress her. No agony over keeping secrets from her.

Lily beamed. "Don't worry. I won't tell your secret to anyone, and I won't bother the others by talking about it with them."

A sinking feeling suddenly entered James's stomach. Sirius still didn't know that Lily knew. Oh well, as long as she didn't talk to him about it...

James smiled, hoping his apprehension didn't appear on his face. "Alright, let's go. Time for the holidays."

The two made their way back to the platform. Lily grabbed her trunk. "You'll write?" she asked.

He laughed. "Of course! See you!" He waved as Lily disappeared into the mass of steam and happy people.

"James! Oh, James!"

A dark-haired woman had just appeared from the steam.

"Mum!"

Mrs. Potter ran to James and enveloped him in a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh, James! It's so nice to see you again! Did you have a good term?"

"Yeah, it was excellent. Where's Dad?"

Mrs. Potter's expression suddenly became bleak. "His health has gotten worse. But he sends his love, and he wants to see you."

James examined his mother. Her hair seemed grayer than it had last time he'd seen her, and there were circles under her eyes. Was it his imagination, or did she look thinner?

Mrs. Potter sighed. She levitated James's trunk for him and the two made their way to the barrier. James's mum asked him thousands of questions about his schoolwork, his O., his friends, anything that came to mind. James answered all her questions with patience. After all, he hadn't seen her since Easter.

"Oh! That reminds me! Mum, can Sirius stay with us for the holidays?"

His mother smiled. "Yes, of course! Sirius knows he's always welcome to stay with us. What a polite young man."

James struggled to keep a straight face. It wasn't very often that someone called Sirius "a polite young man." Still, Sirius was raised in a strict pureblood household. He knew how to be a gentleman when the time called.

"Excellent! Thanks, mum."

After a quick side-along Apparation, James was back at the Potter mansion. As his mum let the spell levitating his trunk die, their house elf, Cheeky, ran into the front room, wearing a bed sheet like a toga.

"Young master has returned from school!" Cheeky exclaimed. "Cheeky hopes master had a good term!" He bowed low.

James smiled. "Yeah, I did. Thanks Cheeky!"

"Cheeky, how is Mr. Potter?" James's mum asked with concerned eyes.

Cheeky's large, bat-like ears drooped. "Master still has not woken up."

Mrs. Potter sighed. "Very well. Cheeky, please take James's things to his room."

Cheeky bowed low, then with a loud CRACK, both Cheeky and the trunk were gone. James suddenly smiled at a memory of Lily surrounded by a bunch of eager-to-please elves just a few days ago.

"Come along, James. Your father wants to see you." Mrs. Potter called. James followed her until they reached the room that his parents shared. He quietly entered. His mother was gently nudging his father and saying things like "wake up, darling. James is here to see you."

"Hmm? James?" Mr. Potter sat up. James had to hold his breath to keep from gasping. His father looked so old. His skin was pallid and his eyes looked dead. Still, he smiled when he saw James. "How are you, my boy?"

"G-good. You okay, Dad?" James said as he walked to his father's bedside.

"Yes, I'm fine." he wheezed. "You're mother's taking good care of me."

He smiled at his wife sitting at the foot of the bed. Mrs. Potter smiled reassuringly at him, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes.

"So," Mr. Potter coughed. "How is Hogwarts, James? Still getting into trouble with those mates of yours? Kissed all the girls in school yet?"

"James is too young for that kind of thing!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed, aghast.

Her husband chortled. "Nonsense! He's fifteen! Well? Is there a girlfriend in the picture."

Mrs. Potter frowned, but James only chuckled and said "Something like that." Well, it was true. After all, Lily was a _girl_. They were _friends_. Had Lily heard him say that, she would have been outraged. The thought just made James smile.

"That's my boy!" his father beamed.

Mrs. Potter just rolled her eyes. "Men," she said.

Just then, James's father burst out into a fit of coughing. James's happiness over Lily began to fade. Seeing his father so tired and pale made him feel helpless.

"Darling, I think you need some rest." Mrs. Potter said, her voice full of concern.

Her husband sighed. "Perhaps you're right. Well then, I'll continue the subject later. Don't think I'm finished with you until I've heard every detail about this girl." Mr. Potter winked at James and then laid down to rest.

James and his mother backed out of the room quietly. As his mother shut the door, James turned to her.

"Don't you think you should call a healer? What if he needs to go to St. Mungo's?"

She glared at him. "Nonsense. I'm taking good care of him. We don't need those silly little healers. They just get in the way."

"Mum! What if Dad's not getting any better? At this rate, he might-"

"Don't!" his mother snapped. "Enough of this! Go to your room and unpack! Aren't you going to write to Sirius?"

"Sirius doesn't need to come. Not with Dad in this state! Let me help you take care of him."

"No! I'm handling it just fine. Besides," she said. "It's important for you to be with boys your own age. Now, do as I say! Go write to Sirius before I change my mind."

James was angry, but he did as his mother asked. He wrote a hasty invitation to Sirius and sent it with the family owl. Then he began to unpack some of his clothes and shove them into the drawers of his dresser.

Once all of that was done, James found that he had too much leisure time. Images of his pale father kept entering his mind. Unable to take it anymore, James decided to write another letter.

_Dear Lily, _he began.

_I hope you are having a wonderful holiday. Mine has been great so far. The weather is brilliant here. It's nice to be free of all the stress over O.W.L.s, don't you think?_

_Your mate, _

_James_

It was awful. No way he could send that. It made him sound like a prat. Instead, crumpled it into a ball and tossed it away. Taking out another piece of parchment, he tried again.

Eleven attempts later, James decided to quit. Laying on his bed, James tried to keep his mind off of his father by simply thinking of Lily. Where was she now? Was she with her family? Was she having a good holiday? Was she thinking of Remus, or Sirius, or him? What if she was thinking about Peter? The thought made James shudder. Lily and Peter? The children would be little red-headed, rat babies... But then again. How much better would that be than a green-eyed child who's hair wouldn't lie flat? James chuckled to himself.

Like that would ever happen.

The truth was, as soon as Lily walked away from James at Kings Cross she literally ran into her sister.

"Ugh! Watch where you're going, freak!" her lovely sister said.

Lily gave a wary smile. "Nice to see you too, Tuney."

Petunia scowled. "The feeling is _not_ mutual. And don't call me that."

"Oh, there you are girls!"

Lily's mother came bustling into view with her father following behind.

"Mum! Dad!"

Lily ran to embrace them both. It had been so long since she'd seen them.

"There you are, Lily-flower. We've been looking everywhere for you!"

Lily smiled up into her father's kind face.

"Sorry Dad! I was just-"

"She was just talking to some _boy_." Petunia sneered. Lily flashed her an annoyed look, knowing she was about to get the third degree.

"Yeah. Just a friend." she said.

"A boy?" her mother asked. "Lily, you know I worry about you. In that big school with no adult supervision..."

"Mum! Relax. I said he was just a friend."

She rolled her eyes, though her mother still looked concerned.

"Come on, family!" her father called merrily. "The car's waiting. I got an excellent parking space this year!"

Lily picked up her trunk, blushing. She desperately hoped no one heard her father yelling about the car. Muggle things weren't always welcome.

Then a feeling of shame rushed over her. This was her family! Why should she be ashamed of her Muggle roots. She was Mudblood and proud!

"Good to hear, Dad!" she said.

Petunia only scowled at her. The four of them made their way through the barrier and out into the Muggle world.

Lily's mother looked faint.

"Walking through walls! I don't think I'll ever get over it. It's amazing!" She smiled proudly at Lily. "Our own daughter is amazing!"

"She's not so special!" Petunia cried shrilly. "She's just a freak! Just like all her freak friends that go to that freak school!"

Lily winced each time Petunia said the word 'freak.' She wanted to cry. Why did her sister have to hate her so much?

"You're just jealous." Lily said. "You didn't think it was so freaky five years ago!"

"Now, girls." Their father chided. "Why don't we just try to get along? Put our differences behind us?" He put an arm around both of his daughters.

"Fine." Both Lily and Petunia grumbled.

However, they didn't speak to each other the entire car ride home. Lily answered all her parents questions the best she could. It was hard explaining to them what a boggart was. It took twenty minutes to explain to them how Professor Binns was still teaching even though he was dead.

"He's a ghost, you see?" Lily told her mother. "He can teach history because he's lived through it."

Lily hoped her mother would laugh. Instead she just said, "Well. I think the school board should look into this. After all, is a ghost-teacher really such a good idea?"

Lily sighed. She sometimes wished that her family understood her better. She knew they loved her and they loved the idea of magic, but they could never understand exactly what went on while she was at Hogwarts. It used to be nice, being able to talk to Sev. But now that door was closed.

She thought of James. He said he'd write. She hoped it would be soon. She thought of Remus. Poor Remus who had it so much worse than she did. Being Muggle-born was one thing, but being a werewolf was completely different. Having to hide something like that every month at the full moon. She was surprised no one had found out.

But, then again, someone _had_ found out. Hadn't Severus told her his theory a thousand times? She had thought he was only guessing. Only trying to spread rumors out of spite to James and his friends. She knew now that he had been right all along. She also knew that if Severus realized he was right or had any way to prove it, he would be very dangerous to the Marauders.

She sighed. If only she could warn them. But, they didn't know that she knew their secret.

Lily wasn't an idiot. She knew that James went behind their back to tell her. She knew he broke his friend's trust to tell her this secret. She was angry with him, the prat, but she figured she'd let him live and learn with this one. After all, its not like she was his mother.

Meanwhile, Lily would bear the secret silently. Once James got up the nerve to actually tell his friends about her, Lily would be able to talk to them freely.

James and Sirius. Lily really admired the two of them sometimes. They were best friends, no matter what. Through thick, thin, and werewolves, they stuck together. Lily only wished she had that kind of friendship. First Tuney, now Severus.

What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she have close friends like the Marauders had? At least, close friends that wouldn't hurt her.

Perhaps that was why she was so short with James. One minute she trusted him, and the next she didn't. She really didn't know what to make of him. For five years she had him marked as a git, a flirt, and a bad influence. But, in less than a week, she had gotten to know this other side of him. A side of him that made her want to laugh, cry, and tear her hair out all at the same time. It was like she' been living box for five years and she was just now learning how to feel again. She supposed she'd be forever grateful to James for that reason.

But she knew there were consequences. Just knowing the truth about Remus was trouble. She could almost feel that she was part of something larger now. Somewhere, deep within her gut, apprehension was stirring. Her life was changed forever, and she knew it. Whether they knew it or not, Lily was now forever connected with the Marauders. And, knowing the Marauders, that was always a risk.

Ready or not, it was a risk she had too take.

_Hogwarts_, Lily thought to herself. _Get ready for hell_.


	10. The Grocery Store Incident

**Sorry It's been a while. A very long while actually. The truth is that I've started to work on some other projects. I'm considering posting another fanfiction (from Hermione's point of view) and working on that while I work on this one. That would mean that I would spend less time working on this fanfiction than I already do. Honestly, I think the Hermione fanfic is shaping up to be a good one, but I'd appreciate any comments on what I should decide. As always, please review! And thanks for reading!**

Knock, knock!

James heard the telltale noise all the way from up in his bedroom where he was currently devouring the latest Quidditch magazines a few days into the summer holidays. Immediately, he was on his feet and out the door.

"Good afternoon, Ma'am! Sir!" Cheeky's high pitched voice drifted to James's ears from downstairs. James muttered a curse. How was it the elf always made it to the door before James did?

Without thinking twice, James slid down the banister of the long spiral stairs, coming to a less-than-graceful stop right in front of the door, which was being held open by Cheeky to reveal a grinning Sirius and his highly disapproving mother. Sirius's hair had been slicked back and he was wearing what looked like highly uncomfortable wizard's robes. His mother, wearing thick dark robes despite the summer heat, scowled at the sight of James in his Muggle clothing- jeans and a t-shirt- and brushed past Cheeky without asking whether or not she could come in. Her shoes scuffed the floor as she entered the room.

Noticing this, she turned to Cheeky with a highly superior air. Cheeky seemed to wither under her gaze; his ears drooped and his eyes widened.

"Well," Mrs. Black said. "Aren't you going to fix this?"

"Y-y-yes ma'am!" Cheeky squeaked. He ran from the room in order to find the right supplies.

At that moment, James's mother walked in. She looked the same as before with frazzled hair and dark circles under her eyes. She stopped dead when she saw Mrs. Black standing in front of the threshold.

"Oh!" she said, surprised. "Walburga! I- I forgot you were coming! How are you?"

"Your house elf is slow. Make sure it punishes itself accordingly," was all she said.

"I- er- I will. Thank you for telling me." Mrs. Potter said with a forced smile.

Mrs. Black sniffed haughtily. "I hope you haven't forgotten why I've come." Mrs. Potter opened her mouth to speak, but Mrs. Black cut her off. "I've come to deliver my son, Sirius, into your care for the summer. Please make sure all his needs are attended to. Say hello, Sirius!" she snapped.

Sirius, who had been snickering with James behind his mother's back, arranged his features into a solemn expression and nodded his head in acknowledgement of Mrs. Potter. "Good afternoon, Mrs. Potter. James. I hope you both are well."

James swooped into a low bow. "We are well indeed, Sir Black." he said, grinning.

The corners of Sirius's mouth twitched and he directed his gaze to his mother who didn't seem to find anything wrong with James's greeting and had already returned to her conversation with Mrs. Potter.

"-trust that you will treat him with the proper respect of a pureblood. I also expect him to be back before September first where we will accompany him to the Hogwarts Express with his brother."

Mrs. Potter's forced smile faded a little. "Surely that isn't necessary? Charles and I are perfectly happy to take Sirius to the train ourselves, after all-"

"No," Mrs. Black interrupted. "Sirius will arrive at the Hogwarts Express with his family." She gave one more haughty look to Mrs. Potter before turning to Sirius again. "I expect that you will remember your manners while you are in the care of the Potters, son," she said. "Remember that you are from the Noble House of Black."

"Yes mother," Sirius said with a seemingly expressionless face. Only James saw the flash of anger from behind his eyes.

"Very well," said Mrs. Black. "Good day to you all."

With that, she turned on her heel and strode out of the door which shut by itself behind her.

As soon as she was out of sight, James let out the howl of laughter he'd been holding in since he saw Sirius standing in the doorway. He was holding his sides, laughing and pointing at Sirius, as Sirius made a face at him.

"Where'd you find that getup?" James choked out between laughs."

Sirius scowled. "Not my choice, mate. The old bat made me wear this."

Still snickering, James raised his eyebrows. "Is you're whole trunk filled with this kind of stuff?"

Sirius shrugged. "Pretty much." Then he smirked. "As far as my mum knows."

Both James and Sirius erupted into laughter this time. Mrs. Potter watched her son and his friend with a kind of amused interest.

"Welcome back, Sirius," she finally cut in. "As always, your mother is a- er- lovely woman."

Sirius grinned. "Thanks Mrs. P."

The door to the kitchen suddenly opened just a crack. Cheeky poked his tiny elf's nose out of it, followed by his tennis-ball shaped eyes and bat-like ears.

"Cheeky has come to buff the floor," he squeaked. "Would Mistress like Cheeky to take Master Sirius's things to Master James's room?" Cheeky looked terrified and ashamed. No doubt he'd been punishing himself while Mrs. Black was still there. This always happened when she came to visit.

Mrs. Potter smiled reassuringly at the poor elf. "That won't be necessary, Cheeky. James and Sirius are perfectly capable of carrying the trunk themselves." She gave them a significant look and the two boys instantly sprang to grab a handle on the trunk and prepare for the long haul upstairs.

"Not too heavy." James lied easily.

"Perfect." his mother replied, turning back to the depressed elf.

The boys began to travel up the stairs keeping their cries of "It's slipping!" and "What the hell did you put in this thing, Padfoot?" as quiet as possible, so as not to upset Cheeky any more.

When they finally made it to James's room they dropped the trunk with a loud CLUNK! onto the floor.

"Glad that's over." Sirius muttered, rubbing the small blisters on his already Quidditch-worn hands.

"How many clothes did you _bring_?" James asked, stretching out his sore arms.

Sirius scowled. "They're not clothes, you git."

James rolled his eyes. "Then what do you have in there? Kreacher?"

Sirius made a face. "Let me show you."

He opened his trunk. James tried to see what was in it, but Sirius hunched over it in such a way that James couldn't see past.

"What is it?" James asked impatiently.

Sirius turned around and grinned. He stood up, hiding whatever it was behind his back.

"I would've given this to you before we left school, but it wasn't finished yet. Just finished enchanting it this morning." Sirius said with pride.

"You did magic outside school?" James asked, itching to see the object.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Please. I didn't get caught. And even if I had, it isn't as though they could do anything to me. My family's got some powerful connections." He grimaced. "Anyway. I thought we could use these."

From behind his back, he revealed a mirror.

"A mirror?" James asked. "I've got one, thanks."

Sirius snorted. "Not one like this. Here." He thrust the mirror into James's hands and rummaged around in his trunk for something else. After a little while, he pulled out an identical mirror. "See?" he said to James, who didn't understand at all. "We can communicate through these. Whenever you want to talk, you just hold up this and if I'm on the other end, we can have a chat."

James glanced down at the mirror he held in his hands. Instead of his own face reflected in the glass, he saw Sirius staring up at him.

James grinned. "Nice work, mate! This is genius!"

Sirius smirked arrogantly. "I know."

He laughed. "This is perfect! We can use these when we're in separate detentions, or something."

"Exactly what I thought," said Sirius. "Now help me get this dusty old outfit off so we can play Quidditch."

Meanwhile, Lily spent the first few days of her holidays in boredom. As usual, she got a letter from Mary wishing her well. She responded with her own wishes for her well-being. Both were short, polite letters.

She was most anxiously waiting for a letter from James. He promised he would write and she was dying to hear how his summer's been. If she only had an owl of her own, she would write him herself. However, her parents were very adamant that they would not live in the same house as a large, hooting bird and they refused to listen to Lily's objections otherwise.

It had never bothered Lily much before this summer. Usually, she would have Severus to talk to, but seeing as that wasn't an option anymore, she spent all her time with her family.

Lily loved her family, she really did, but as the years went on, it became harder and harder to relate to them. Mr. and Mrs. Evans always tried their best to keep up with their daughter and her world, and even though Lily was always patient with them, sometimes it wasn't enough.

One morning at breakfast, Lily struck up a rather difficult conversation with her father about a Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Every so often, she had to pause and re-explain the rules to her father. Petunia sat on the other side of the kitchen table, loudly chewing her cereal.

"So, Hufflepuff has possession of the Quaffle-" said Lily.

"What the hell is a Hufflepuff?" interrupted Petunia.

Lily winced. "It's one of the four houses of Hogwarts." she answered.

Petunia made a face. "At the freak school?"

"Yes! At the freak school!" said Lily, losing her temper. "The freak school that I go to! To learn all kinds of freak things from freak professors with all my freak friends!"

Petunia seemed shocked. "Don't get angry just because its true!"

Lily was about to lose it completely when her father interjected with "Now, now, girls. Let's try to get along, hmm? Petunia, be nice to your sister. Lily, don't take everything she says to heart. Why don't you finish telling me about that game."

So Lily turned her back angrily on her sister and continued her rant on the Quidditch game.

"So, just when it looked like Diggory was going score, James comes out of no where and snatches the Quaffle away from him! So, James has the Quaffle and he's flying as fast as he can down the pitch. None of the other Hufflepuffs seem to realize that James has it because they're all flying towards Diggory to back him up. So the only thing in James's way is the Keeper, who's to busy shouting to his team to come back him up to see where the Quaffles going as it flies _right through the goal hoops_. It was the most exciting game I've ever seen! Hufflepuff was pretty upset about it, and you could practically see James's head grow bigger, but the stands went crazy. I lost my voice from cheering so hard."

Lily beamed at her father, who looked a little lost.

"Er- um- yes, sweetheart. That sounds like a load of fun. Orange juice?"

Lily deflated a little, but nodded. Perhaps it was to much to ask of her father to understand a game like Quidditch.

Mr. Evans got up and walked to the refrigerator. He opened it and frowned.

"Well," he said. "I guess we're out of orange juice." He turned to his daughters. "Would you girls mind running to go get some?"

"I'll go." said Lily.

"Excellent!" her father beamed. "Why don't you go with her, Petunia?"

Petunia shot her father a look. "I'm eating," was all she said.

"Petunia." her father replied sternly, giving her a look of his own.

She sighed, grabbed her purse, and was almost half way out the door before she bothered to shout over her shoulder for Lily.

Lily sighed and followed her sister. She was not liking the summer so far.

James was loving the summer so far! Everyday, he and Sirius played Quidditch in the Potter's backyard. When they weren't playing, the two boys ran rampant all over the house. One particular morning, they found themselves with nothing to do.

"Do you want to go search for bogarts again?" asked Sirius, playing with James's snitch.

James shook his head. "I don't think there are any left."

"We could play Exploding Snap." suggested Sirius.

"That's no fun with two people!"

"All right! Fine!" Sirius looked annoyed. "What do _you _suggest we do then?"

James smiled mischievously. "Why don't we get out of the house? We could go mess with some Muggles."

Sirius laughed. "That's cruel! You sound like my mother! Let's go."

So the two of them grabbed the Invisibility Cloak, hopped on their broomsticks, and took off. It was a bit too early for anyone to be awake, but they kept an eye out, just in case. As soon as they spotted people milling about, they touched down and stashed their brooms away in some mangy-looking bush. For good measure, they draped the Invisibility Cloak over them.

They continued on foot until they reached a medium-sized Muggle grocery store. The few shoppers that were present didn't bother to look at them as they strode arrogantly into the shop. Sirius pulled out some of his spare dungbombs and began scattering them about. Meanwhile James meandered the isles, examining all the fascinating Muggle food labels.

He wasn't looking where he was going and he crashed into a Muggle girl.

"Excuse me." he mumbled, feeling foolish.

The girl seemed about to mutter her own apologies, when she stopped short.

"Do I know you?" she asked.

James looked at her. She looked to be older than him. She had blonde hair, a long neck, and big, horsey teeth. However, there was something familiar about this girl. "Er- I don't think so." he said, shrugging.

Just then, a very familiar voice met his ears.

"Petunia! Do you have it? Can we leave now?"

Suddenly, realization came crashing down on him. He recognized this girl! Well, not her specifically, but he recognized her nose, the shape of her eyes, even the expression the girl was wearing. Didn't Lily mention she had a sister.

He turned and ran as fast as he could. He couldn't let Lily see him, and he definitely couldn't let Sirius see Lily.

Lily was sulking around the milk isle waiting for this horrible shopping trip to be over. Petunia refused to even look at her the whole way there. She didn't understand why her father had asked _both_ of them to go. Wasn't one person enough?

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a young man slip a dungbomb into a unsuspecting lady's purse. Her prefect's instincts kicked in at once, and she went to go confront the boy.

As she arrived, she realized two things. One, this was the Muggle world. Dungbombs didn't exist here. And two, the young man was Sirius Black.

She froze. Why was he here? Was he here to see her? Did he realize that she knew the Marauder's secret?

Without stopping to think, she swiftly walked away. She spared a glance behind her and saw Sirius glance at her with confusion. He hadn't recognized her in her Muggle clothes. Quickly, she ducked behind a display of an assortment of big, red apples and hoped that her hair would blend in.

"Lily?"

She spun around and found herself face-to-face with James, who was also hiding.

"James?" she said breathlessly. "What are you doing here?"

James shrugged. "Hiding."

"I mean," she said. "What are you doing in this store? In this town?"

"I- I...er- I-"

"Lily!"

Lily winced at the sound of Petunia's voice. She risked a peek and saw her sister holding the orange juice, looking around for her. Lily was about to run to her, when someone else appeared just behind her.

"James? James! PRONGS!"

James muttered a curse under his breath.

"Well? Aren't you going to go get him?" Lily hissed.

James shrugged. "I would if that would make sure that he didn't see you."

Lily scowled. "What's the big deal? Why can't he see me?"

James raised an eyebrow. "You know the answer to that. If you didn't, you wouldn't be hiding here."

Lily blushed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. Then what do you propose we-"

"LILY!"

"James!"

Lily poked her head around the display and saw that Sirius and Petunia were dangerously close to the apple display.

"Do you think I should run for it?" James whispered into her ear. She hadn't realized he was so close and it startled her. She jumped, accidentally bumping into the apple display, sending all the apples tumbling to the ground. Both Lily and James lunged to catch as many apples as they could, but it was too late. Not only were Petunia and Sirius staring _right at them_, but so was everyone else in the store.

Petunia, looking furious, grabbed Lily's arm and marched her out of the store.

"Why," she hissed. "Do you _always_ have to embarrass me?"

James was left behind with the grocery store employees and Sirius glaring daggers at him. He apologized to the manager and walked away as quickly as he could with Sirius right behind him.

As soon as they arrived at the bush where their brooms were stashed, Sirius rounded on James.

"What the bloody hell was that, mate?" he said.

James frowned. "I'm sorry! I didn't even know she lived here?"

"You expect me to believe that rubbish?" Sirius was livid. "I thought she was angry at you!"

"She was! Er- I mean, she is!" James said. "This was an accident! I swear!"

Sirius scrutinized his best friend carefully. After a moment he spoke.

"Fine. I'll believe you this time. But don't expect it to happen again."

With that, he grabbed his broomstick and took off, James following. It was a difficult ride home because all the Muggles were out and about. When the boys finally arrived at the Potter's estate, the subject of Lily wasn't brought up again.

But when Sirius was asleep that night, James wrote a good, long letter to Lily, explaining his mistake in the grocery store and wishing her well.

And when Lily awoke to the sound of an owl tapping at her window a while later, she couldn't have been happier.


End file.
